


scars that we can't erase

by HowlingAlchemist



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd Needs a Hug, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Black Eagles Route Spoilers, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Blue Lions Route Spoilers, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Church Route Spoilers, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Golden Deer Route Spoilers, Gender-Neutral My Unit | Byleth, Heavy Angst, Implied/Referenced Torture, Mental Instability, Multi, Post-Timeskip | War Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Slow Burn, Whump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-16
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-02-26 21:07:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 35
Words: 94,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21815212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HowlingAlchemist/pseuds/HowlingAlchemist
Summary: Byleth stays asleep for five years and one month after falling to the canyon during the Empire's invasion of Garreg Mach, missing their reunion with the Blue Lions. When they finally awake, they find Fodlan in ruin, with Edelgard unleashing devastating war, the Blue Lions whereabouts unknown, and Dimitri is supposedly dead. Having no other options, Byleth becomes an ally with Claude and the Alliance, hoping to bring peace to Fodlan and save what is left of the Blue Lions.
Relationships: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 99
Kudos: 189





	1. Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> So, I have a problem. And his name is Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd.  
> I don’t know what it is about this son of a bitch but… I love him. Like I have loved a lot of characters in my day, but HIM? Jesus. I can’t remember the last time I’ve loved a character this much. And there’s a thing about characters I love, I love to see them SUFFER. I swear I have tried to read every damn Dimitri angst fic on this site and it is not enough. So here I am writing my own.  
> So, two things: one, I haven’t written in a long ass time so I am rusty. Also, I have no idea wtf a beta is, but apparently that’s important, so disclaimer that I don’t have one. Second, because I am literally Dimileth trash and can’t pick which Byleth I like better, I am going to do my best to refer to Byleth as they/them. So, pick whichever one you want because I certainly can’t. If I slip up, apologies in advance.

Byleth woke up with a headache.

The strong aroma of healing incense was enough to make them vomit, but they didn’t think that was the reason for the headache. Just how long had they been asleep? Something told them that they weren’t just taking a regular old nap.

Trying to fight the groggy state they were in, Byleth did their best to recall what they last remembered. The monastery under attack. Rhea entrusting the students to them. A dragon roaring as it was attacked by beasts. Dimitri screaming out their name as they fell into the canyon…

Dimitri. The Blue Lions. Did they know that Byleth was okay? 

Trying to remain calm, Byleth took a moment to take a look at their surroundings. They laid in a soft bed, covered by a thin sheet that hugged their body. Despite feeling nauseous upon doing so, Byleth sat up. They appeared to be in an infirmary, by the looks of it. Right next to their bed was a small table, which was home to the burning incense that filled their nose. Since when did healers use incense for healing anyway?

Byleth rubbed their fingers against their temple. Goddess did they have a headache.

Byleth wasn’t sure how long they had sat there before they heard the knob to the door twist, startling them. With their mercenary instincts kicking in, Byleth jumped out of bed, swallowing the vomit that nearly came out of their throat while doing so. There was nothing nearby to use as a weapon, so they quickly went in a defensive position, raising their fists. 

They didn’t have time to wonder where the Sword of the Creator was before the door opened. Emerging from the hallway was a young woman, wearing the typical cleric outfit, with her long dark hair in a braid that ran over her shoulder. Their eyes widened upon seeing Byleth, and she quickly raised her hands. “You’re up,” her voice cracked.

“What’s going on?” Byleth nearly yelled. “Where am I?”

Byleth did not lower their defensive position despite the cleric’s clear intention of not fighting. “Please, calm down,” she said. “You shouldn’t be standing.”

“I said where am I?” Byleth took a step towards the cleric, startling her.

“Garreg Mach monastery,” she lowered her head, trying to hide the fear on her face. 

Garreg Mach. Byleth must have not noticed in their groggy state where they were. Manuela’s infirmary was nearly unrecognizable; Manuela always kept the infirmary clean and up to date. But now, it looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in months. 

“Where’s Manuela?” Byleth began to worry for her safety now. “And Rhea? Seteth? Where are my students?”

Byleth must have sounded angry, because the cleric nearly looked like she was about to have a heart attack. She was stuttering, trying to respond to Byleth but couldn’t get the words out. Byleth almost felt bad for her, if it wasn’t for the fact that they just wanted answers.

“Relax Abigail, I can take it from here.”

That voice. They knew that voice. Though they haven’t heard it in a long time.

Just as they expected, Claude Von Riegan stepped into the room. He had this mischievous grin pasted on his face, similar to the one he commonly wore back at the monastery.

Strange. He looked older.

Despite the smile, Byleth did not lower their stance. Claude never gave them too much trouble at the monastery. He was quite charismatic actually, and nearly put a smile on Byleth’s face several times. However, one of the first things Byleth noticed about Claude was his smile never reached his eyes. They didn’t know him too well, but they had heard stories from Dimitri and the others of the schemes he had up his sleeve. They simply could not trust him, at least not now.

Patting the cleric Abigail on the back, he dismissed her. She nearly ran out of the room without a word. “Sorry about her,” he only spoke once she shut the door behind her. “I imagine you must have been startled seeing her, considering you’ve never met. She’s a great cleric, though she’ll never be as good as Marianne.”

Claude sounded bitter when he spoke her name. Marianne had asked to join the Blue Lions not long into the school year. She was quiet, but Byleth always thought she was a sweet girl, so of course they accepted. Her healing proved to be an asset to the Blue Lions; her and Mercedes worked so well together it almost felt like no one ever needed healing. 

Byleth wondered where she was now.

“I don’t think she expected you to wake up,” Claude continued. “To be honest, I don’t know if any of us did. Way to prove us all wrong huh Teach?”

“What do you mean?” It was definitely something strange to say. What had made Claude, and what they guessed was the rest of the Golden Deer, think that they would not wake up?

Claude looked dumbfounded, to say the least. Taking one step closer to Byleth, he ran a hand through his hair. “Teach are you serious?”

Byleth nodded.

A pause. “Teach, you’ve been missing,” he finally said. “Actually, I think that’s an understatement. I think most people thought you were dead at this point. You’ve been missing for over five years.”

What?

They didn’t want to believe him, but quickly things started to click in Byleth’s head. That would certainly explain the run-down state of Manuela’s infirmary and the older appearance of Claude.

Eyes widening, Byleth nearly ran to the window, not even noticing that they had lowered their defensive position. Upon looking outside, Byleth saw just how ruined the monastery was. They could barely look outside the window in the state that it was in. Buildings that they used to use every day looking disheveled and unused. Parts of it were barely recognizable now. 

Not wanting Claude to see the shocked look on their face, Byleth didn’t turn to face him. “What date is it.” It was a statement, not a question.

Claude paused again. “The 25th of the Guardian Moon…” If he continued to pause, Byleth swore they were going to hit him. Finally, he continued. “Year 1185.”

Byleth gasped, but not loud enough for Claude to hear. Not only had they been asleep for over five years, but they managed to miss the Millennium Festival by a month. The Millennium Festival that they had promised to have their reunion with the Blue Lions. Byleth did not know if they had actually managed to get together, but they wouldn’t have known considering Byleth wasn’t there. They could only imagine how much they had probably let the Blue Lions down.

Byleth finally turned to face Claude, trying to look as composed as possible. They guessed that if there was any time to have trouble controlling their emotions, finding out that they’ve been asleep for over five years was a good enough excuse. Their father was probably rolling in his grave grumbling something along the lines of “Bout time.”

“What has happened since I’ve been gone?” Byleth didn’t know if they had the courage to say it, but it eventually came out.

“Well Edelgard certainly hasn’t made things easy for us,” he laughed, but sounded defeated. “All of Fodlan’s been at war. The Empire is doing whatever it can to strike down anyone that disagrees with them and take over the country. Hell, their doing a pretty good job at it too.”

It was times like these when Byleth really wished they had Sothis commentating in their head.

“Not to mention Lady Rhea has been missing just as long as you,” Claude continued. “What’s left of the Kingdom and the Alliance has barely been able to hold things together, to my dismay. Though I guess I shouldn’t complain. For once things finally started looking up when we took back Garreg Mach, after months of trying. However, no one in the Alliance expected to find you along the way.”

Byleth raised an eyebrow, which Claude noticed. “While traveling here, we heard intel that a nearby village had found a deadpan person with green hair floating in the river. Knew it was you the moment I heard.” Byleth didn’t appreciate Claude’s attempt at humor. “When we found the people taking care of you, we offered to bring you with us. That was about a month ago.”

“The Blue Lions.” Byleth finally had the courage to ask. “Were the Blue Lions here?”

Claude shook his head. “I mean even if they were, we wouldn’t have known. This place has been used by thieves ever since it was abandoned; there’s loads of abandoned camps here.”

Byleth looked at the ground. “Do you know where they are now?”

Claude paused again, squinting his eyes as if he was thinking. “No, Teach.” He said. “The Kingdom hasn’t exactly been in a great place since the war started. Heard most of it is under control by someone named Cornelia, she was sent there by the Empire. What’s left of the Kingdom is trying to fight against her advances, but not only do I not know who’s at play, but they are having a pretty hard time keeping Cornelia at bay.”

Byleth closed their eyes. The fact that they couldn’t know what became of their Blue Lions pained their still heart. For all they knew, anyone of them could be dead.

“Dimitri,” their voice shook. “What of Dimitri?”

Claude stayed quiet too long for their liking.

“Claude.” Byleth stared at him. “What happened to Dimitri.”

Claude inhaled. “Teach…”

“Tell me.” If Byleth had the Sword of the Creator, it would be at Claude’s throat right about now. 

“Teach, he’s gone.”

What did he mean gone?

Byleth walked towards Claude with their fists clenched. No one would have ever guessed that before then, Byleth had little to no emotion. Because right now, they could hardly contain themselves. 

Byleth grabbed hold of Claude’s shirt, pulling him close. “What do you mean gone?”

Claude closed his eyes, not even protesting the threatening demon gripping his shirt. “He’s dead,” he finally said. “That Cornelia had him executed, supposedly Dimitri murdered his uncle.”

Byleth let go of Claude’s shirt. They didn’t believe that for a second. Even in the mentally unstable state Dimitri was in the last time they saw him, he wouldn’t murder the person taking care of the throne for him until he was of age. 

Something in Byleth’s expression must have said something. “So, you don’t believe it either.” Claude walked towards the window. As mischievous as Claude was, there was no denying he was one of the monastery’s smartest students. It was almost frightening how intelligent he was. “Especially considering that supposedly Cornelia didn’t show the body. However, that’s all I know.”

Byleth didn’t look at Claude. They were too worried about Dimitri to think of anything else. Something in their gut told them that despite knowing that they believed Dimitri to survive this supposed execution, they had no idea where he could be now. Their best guess was he would have stayed here at the monastery, considering it was abandoned, but he wasn’t. That very thought was enough to make Byleth’s nonexistent heartbeat stop.

“I have to find him,” Byleth did not mean to speak those words, but they came out anyway. “Him and the Blue Lions.”

“Woah, slow down there Teach,” Claude stopped them. “Dimitri may have not been executed, but who knows if he’s still alive. The same can be said for the Blue Lions.”

“I don’t care,” Byleth tried to wake past him. “I’m leaving- “

The ground shook beneath them. Claude’s eyes widened as he quickly walked over to the window. Byleth heard him curse before Claude made his way towards the door. “Looks like you’re not going anywhere. The Empire decided to pay us a visit.”

Byleth didn’t need to look out the window themselves to know that Claude wasn’t lying. Instinctively, Byleth reached for the Sword of the Creator, only to remember it was not there. In fact, Byleth wasn’t even in their normal outfit. They could only assume that that cleric Abigail must have changed them into the much simpler trousers and shirt they had on now. But that didn’t matter.

Jogging, Byleth stepped in front of Claude. “My sword.”

Claude stopped, raising an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”

Byleth sighed. “The Sword of the Creator. I’m going to need it to get the Empire to tell me where the Blue Lions are.”


	2. The Assault

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am glad to see there are other Dimitri angst lovers out there.
> 
> In all seriousness thanks for the support so far. To be honest, I am really was just writing this for myself, so I could’ve cared less if other people enjoyed it. But seeing other people liking this makes me happy :)

Much to their surprise, Claude did not protest too much in regards to letting Byleth fight. Aside from the headache and nausea upon waking up, Byleth was doing pretty good for someone who was asleep over five years, and Claude saw that. Just for safety, Claude had the cleric, Abigail, heal them over once more before he told her to lead them to the armory were the Sword of the Creator lied. 

Byleth was growing silently frustrated while they made their way there. Abigail did seem worried when Claude said they could fight, and thus wasn’t walking as fast as they could to the armory, likely worried for Byleth’s health. But Byleth could care less about their health right now, they needed the Sword of the Creator if they wanted to get the Empire to talk. 

Part of Byleth thought that it may be wishful thinking that some random Empire soldiers would know where Dimitri, or any of the Blue Lions for that matter, were. But considering that it seemed like Claude had no clue where any of them were, going straight to the Empire themselves was their best bet. Byleth would have to be lucky if they actually were to find out any information, but they were willing to risk it.

Although they tried not to show it, Byleth was unsettled by the thought that they were not there for their students during these past five years. While at the academy, Byleth grew attached to them, and thus did whatever they could to protect them in the instances where the students had to fight. Finally, after all their years of living, Byleth finally knew how their father felt watching his child on the battlefield. Goddess bless his soul; as soon as Byleth was old enough to pick up a weapon they were fighting alongside the mercenaries. Jeralt must have been worried sick, but he always seemed to hide those emotions.

The truth was the Blue Lions were really like family to them now, and the fact that anyone of them could be dead right now scared Byleth to death.

After what seemed like an eternity, Byleth and Abigail finally made it to the armory. After briefly looking around, Byleth quickly noticed the Sword of the Creator, and grabbed it without another word. Without even looking to the cleric, Byleth dashed out of the room, but this time it seemed like Abigail was right behind them. She probably thought that there was no stopping them, so might as well not try. 

As they ran throughout the monastery, trying to get to where the battle was, Byleth had heard several people call out for the professor, in shock that they were awake. They were probably even more startled by seeing that Byleth was going into battle not only after just waking up, but also wearing nothing put trousers and a shirt. But Byleth didn’t have time to think about that right now, if they were injured they had Divine Pulses. As long as they were careful, Byleth could do without their armor for one fight. 

When the two had arrived at the battlefield, things had already escalated greatly; a number of Empire and Alliance soldiers had already lined the ground. The large walls that once surrounded Garreg Mach had already shown sign of damage from the current battle, but surprisingly they were still standing. But Byleth didn’t want to waste one moment more to risk another attack that would send them crumbling down. 

By the time Byleth had turned to look at Abigail, she was already at work trying to save what she could of the Alliance soldiers. The green glow of her magic illuminated the blood-stained ground, but she didn’t seem phased. She hadn’t even moved when a nearby Empire soldier charged at her, axe raised.

Byleth inhaled as the Sword of the Creator hummed in their hand.

Before the soldier could even take another step at the cleric, the Sword of the Creator extended into a whip that cut through the soldier’s stomach, stopping him instantly. Before the whip retracted, Byleth swung their arm, cutting through several more soldiers before they even knew what had hit them. Without even taking a moment to breath, Byleth had forged ahead, cutting through as many soldiers as the sword allowed her to.

They had to get towards the back of this army; odds are that is where the general would be. The general was Byleth’s best chance at getting information. 

As Byleth stood still for one moment, searching the surrounding battle, they didn’t even notice an Empire soldier had tried to attack them from behind until they had fallen dead behind them, landing at their feet. Byleth turned, somehow surprised by the body that suddenly landed behind them. The body emanated a black smoke that had burned their body and the clothes surrounding it.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

Byleth looked up at the familiar voice, seeing Lysithea staring back at them, her hand extended from the cast of magic she had just used. Even though they were in the middle of a battle, Byleth would be lying if they said they weren’t happy to see her. Of all the Golden Deer students, Byleth was the closest to Lysithea. Her skill in dark magic impressed Byleth, all the while Lysithea learned a lot from Byleth’s leadership. Truthfully, Byleth was surprised that she did not follow Marianne’s lead and ask to join the Blue Lions. However, considering that they had only begun to grow close once Edelgard was revealed to be the Flame Emperor, they figured they couldn’t hold it against her.

“How long ago did you wake up? Thirty minutes ago? Not even?” She scolded them. “And the first thing you do is run onto a battlefield?”

Byleth wanted to chuckle at her attempt of sounding older, but they held back. “What, you think I was just going to sit in bed and do nothing while everyone else fought?”

“Well considering that you had just woken up after being asleep for so long, yes, yes I did.” She signed. “Though I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised.”

Before Byleth could respond, the loud cry screech above them. They both looked up, seeing what appeared to be a white wyvern, flying quickly overhead. For just a moment, Byleth gaped in awe, never had seeing a creature of its color before. But they didn’t have much time to admire it before a loud noise, which Byleth assumed to be a catapult, shake the ground.

“What an idiot.” Lysithea shook her head as she shot another magic spell towards an oncoming fortress knight, killing him instantly. “I’ve lost count of the amount of archers I’ve killed here. There’s bound to be more. You would think Claude would take that as a hint to lay low with his beast but no.”

Claude? They had no idea Claude took interest in flying a wyvern, let alone actually riding one. Byleth was surprised, but also impressed by this new information.

“I can only assume you want to follow him.” Lysithea began firing off more magic spells towards soldiers attempting to attack a swift Ignatz, who waved upon seeing Byleth. “Don’t get killed along the way, looks like you forgot to put on your armor.”

Byleth smirked. Thank the goddess this war hadn’t changed Lysithea’s sarcastic personality.

Without another word, Lysithea ran from Byleth, going to help Ignatz take down more Empire soldiers near him. Byleth wasted no time doing exactly what Lysithea said she would and ran in the direction Claude’s wyvern was heading. Along the way, while cutting down more Empire soldiers, Byleth saw more familiar faces. Raphael stopped mid swing of his fists as Byleth stole a kill from him, calling out their name in the process. They noticed Leonie do a double take before calling out “Captain Jeralt’s kid!” before she speared through an Empire soldier while riding her horse. The technique she used filled Byleth with nostalgia, instantly recognizing the way she attacked as mimicking their father. Byleth was about to cut through an enemy archer before Lorenz ran him over with his horse, firing a fire spell at them for good measure. Byleth swore they noticed him wink at them before he rode off again, but with all the commotion going on they failed to see if he actually did. 

Byleth had lost count of how many soldier’s they had cut through, but they had to admit to themselves they were doing good. Not a single Divine Pulse used so far, they barely had a scratch on them. At least the five-year long sleep had allowed them to be well rested for this fight. At this rate they should be getting close to Claude.

Byleth made sure to listen for the sound of Claude’s wyvern, but before they heard it, they heard a scream instead. Turning in the direction of the yell, Byeth could just barely see the pink hair of Hilda through the number of soldiers, cursing at a fallen Empire soldier for getting blood on her outfit. Byleth quickly ran to them; wherever Hilda was, Claude could not be far behind.

By the time Byleth had gotten to her, Hilda swung her axe at another Empire soldier, loudly complaining at all the work she was doing. When she had finished, she flipped her hair, only then noticing Byleth slicing through more enemies near her.

“Professor-“ She was suddenly cut off by the sound of a wyvern screeching, halting her. Looking up, Byleth saw Claude’s wyvern soar into the air, hearing Claude yell something as it did so. Before they could even question what he had said, Hilda grabbed them by the arm, pulling them further away from where they were.

Suddenly, Byleth felt heat rush against their body, making them sweat instantly. When they had gained composure once more, Byleth saw a huge fire break out on the opposite side of the battlefield, killing a number of enemy soldiers. The ones that survived panicked, running away from the flames, though most of them were already too late.

Amongst all the other commotion going on, Byleth heard a desperate plea nearby, begging injured soldiers to retreat. It seemed Byleth had finally found their general.

Running towards the sound of the voice, Byleth didn’t even give Hilda a chance to stop them. It wasn’t long before Byleth had caught sight of what they assumed to the general, doing what he could to rush injured soldiers off the battlefield, but failing. They heard him curse before he turned, his expression changing the moment he saw Byleth.

“You-“ He stuttered. “What are you doing here?”

Byleth didn’t answer, only swinging their sword at them, which he narrowly dodged. The light-haired man dodged and grunted, glaring at Byleth with hate in his eyes. He raised his axe, fully intending to charge at Byleth if it were not for an arrow firing into his shoulder. 

“Damn, missed.” Byleth looked over their shoulder, seeing Claude’s bow raised towards the general. His wyvern was so close the gusts of wind from its wings nearly knocked Byleth over. 

Aside from the scream of pain, the general seemed unphased by the arrow, pulling it out of his shoulder like it was nothing. Once he threw it to the ground, he continued his assault towards Byleth, narrowly dodging another arrow from Claude. Reaching behind his back, the general caught Byleth off guard by throwing a hand axe with his other hand. Byleth felt the axe brush up against their shirt, tearing it, but not cutting enough skin worth worrying over. 

Byleth raised their sword to block the axe that came down on them, which judging by the way he was wielding it, was his preference weapon. “You were supposed to be dead,” he growled. “Edelgard saw you-“

Byleth didn’t give him another moment to speak, it was all the information they needed. If he knew Edelgard, perhaps he actually would have information for them. Pushing him back with the help of the Crest of Flames, Byleth didn’t even give him time to react when the Sword of the Creator extended. Whipping it, Byleth had managed to slice through his legs, just enough to keep him immobile without killing him. 

As he screamed, Claude lowered his bow, then jumped off his wyvern, scratching it as he did so. Claude knew what Byleth intended to do, and there was no stopping them despite his wishes to. 

Walking up to them, Byleth pointed his sword at the man. “Please, don’t…” He begged. “I have a family at home waiting for me, please…”

“Then tell me what you know,” Byleth paused. They were afraid of the answer they could receive, but they had to push forward. “Tell me what you know about the students that came from the Kingdom. Where are they now?” They paused again. “What of Prince Dimitri?”

The soldier’s eyes widened, looking like he did not want to say anything. Byleth pressed the Sword of the Creator against his throat. “I don’t know about the Blue Lions,” he finally said. “I don’t deal with affairs in the Kingdom, I’ve never been stationed there.”

“Then what of Dimitri?” Byleth adjusted, pressing slightly harder into his throat, drawing blood. 

“I don’t know!” He was desperate now. Byleth pressed harder. “Only Edelgard’s most trusted generals know, I have no idea what’s become of him!”

Byleth wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, but they stopped themselves. Dimitri was alive by the sound of it, but they were frightened by what potential state he could be in.   
“Now please…” He was nearly weeping now. “I don’t know anything else… Please my family needs me…”

Claude walked up beside Byleth, patting them on the shoulder. “Well, I don’t think damage to the monastery helps us, but an Empire prisoner makes it slightly better.” Claude stepped forward, grabbing hold of the general.

The moment Claude lifted the injured soldier to his feet, a blast sent Byleth back, knocking the wind out of them. Smoke from a dark magic attack had clouded their vision, and breathing it in made Byleth recover slower. When they had finally looked at what happened, they saw the general, dead on the ground, his body erupting into dark flames. They turned to Claude, who was gasping for breath, clutching the dark magic that had ricocheted on his throat. Hilda was already crying over him, clutching another spot where the magic hit on his chest, burning his skin. She screamed for a cleric, as Claude drew his last breath.

Damn it.

Inhaling, Byleth used a Divine Pulse, and before they reopened their eyes, they heard the general weep, begging for his life.

“Well, I don’t think damage to the monastery helps us, but an Empire prisoner makes it slightly better.”

Claude didn’t even move before Byleth jumped onto him, covering his body from the incoming attack. Just like before, the Empire general erupted into flames, hit head on by the dark magic attack. Byleth heard Claude grunt as they both hit the floor, both of their eyes shutting to shield them from the dark magic’s smoke. In the distance, Byleth heard Claude’s wyvern cry and flee from the seen, the attack startling it. 

Once the smoke had cleared, Byleth shot up, searching for the attacker. They clutched the Sword of the Creator in their hand, fully ready to use its whip to slice through the assassin. 

“Damn, thought I could hit two birds with one stone.”

Byleth looked up. Standing on the remains of a nearby building was a man, wearing an all-black robe. Byleth could only assume that he was smirking, but could not see it for themselves since a mask resembling a bird covered his face.

The sight was all too familiar. This person was wearing the same uniform of the people that attempted to steal the Sword of the Creator on the Goddess’s right of rebirth. The same people that Solon was associated with. The same people that the woman who murdered their father worked for. The same people that the man who sent them into the canyon lead.

Byleth whipped the sword at them, but before it connected the person vanished in a flash.

Defeated, Byleth growled. Behind them, they heard Claude be helped up to his feet by Hilda. “Teach, you just about saved my life.” Claude wiped off some dust on his shoulder.

“They got away,” Byleth completely ignored him. “And they killed him.”

Annoyed that they completely dismissed his attempt at a sentimental moment, Claude sighed. “Whoever that was must have not wanted him to say anything else.” He placed his hand on his chin. “He might have not known much about the Blue Lions, but he could have very well-known other information. They just had to silence him.”

“Damn him.” Byleth clutched the Sword of the Creator enough to make their knuckles turn white. 

“You may not have gotten all the information you wanted out of him, but it’s a start.” Claude walked forward, staring down at the body of the burning general. “Though it seems we can’t use no one knowing your alive to our advantage; Edelgard probably knows you live by now.”

“Who said I would even work with you?” Byleth snapped back at him. “I barely even trust you.”

“Said the person who just saved my life,” Claude retorted. “Listen Teach, you may not want to admit it, but you need us. If you want any chance of finding Dimitri or your Blue Lions, you have much better odds sticking with us then going off on your own.”

“I can handle myself just fine.” Byleth replied.

“I don’t think you understand the situation you’re in,” Claude was quick to respond. “We are in the middle of war. I don’t care how skilled you are, you’re not going to be able to one-man-army yourself through this.”

Byleth looked to the ground. “You don’t know how many forces the Empire has,” Claude continued. “This was barely a fraction of their army. You’re being irrational if you think you can handle the rest.”

Maybe Byleth was being irrational. Hell, the moment they had woken up from their slumber, they had barely even acted like themselves. They swear they have shown more emotion in the time they have been awake then they had in their whole life. 

Byleth had to regain control. Claude was right, there was no way they would be able to find the Blue Lions on their own. As worried as they were about Dimitri, especially considering that from what the general said the Empire was involved in what happened to him, they had to admit that to themselves. This wasn’t even entirely about the Blue Lions. Based on what they saw from the short time they’ve been awake, this country was suffering from the war the Empire caused. They could not let it continue.

“So,” Byleth didn’t make eye contact with Claude. “You want to join forces.”

“I might have said you can’t handle the whole army on your own, but we have a better chance doing it together.” Claude forced them to make eye contact. “And along the way, we will find Dimitri… and the Blue Lions.

Byleth had failed to notice the raised eyebrow Hilda gave Claude.

“Fine,” Byleth agreed. 

Patting them on the shoulder, Claude smiled. “Glad to have you on board Teach.” The pat ached their shoulder. “I would love to talk about our next plan as soon as possible, but we are going to have to sort all this out first.” He gestured to the now finished battle around them. 

Byleth signed, clinging to the cut from the axe on their arm. “Including that. Abigail!” Claude yelled for the cleric, who was heard yelling (though softer) in return. “I’m sending one over to you!”

Claude patted Byleth on the shoulder once more before they left without a word.

“Claude,” Hilda began as soon as Byleth was out of earshot. “What do you mean we’ll help them find the Blue Lions?”

Claude looked away from her. “All part of the plan, Hilda.” Claude whistled for his wyvern, who returned with haste. “A little white lie won’t hurt them.”

“A little white lie? When they find out-“

“Hilda, please.” Claude scratched his wyvern. “Just trust me on this one. Since when have my schemes not worked out?”

“Plenty of times actually.”

“Beside the point.” Claude jumped on his wyvern. “For now, we don’t tell them the truth. Got it?”

Hilda sighed. “Fine.”

“Knew I could count on you.” And before Hilda could say anything else, Claude flew off on his wyvern.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my first playthrough (Blue Lions gang rise up), I recruited both Marianne and Lysithea. Because of this, they both hold a special place in my heart, which is why Byleth is so close to them. At this point in the story, Byleth has a B support with both of them. Only difference is Lysithea didn’t join the Blue Lions. Both of these characters will be important later on, so keep an eye out.
> 
> It’s kind of a headcanon of mine that after Byleth loses their connection with Sothis, they become more emotional as a result. So if Byleth seemed OOC here, that’s why. Hopefully it doesn’t bother anyone too much.
> 
> Anyways, I said I didn’t know when I would update again, and here I am updating right away. I would say I don’t know when I’m going to update again, but we saw how that turned out last time. So… I’ll update whenever, I guess.


	3. Trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I managed to plan out more of this story, so I added some tags to better reflect what I have planned for the future. I may add more tags as the story progresses, but I think it’s pretty accurate now.
> 
> I still am not very far into my maddening Verdeant Wind playthrough (but managed to kick Death Knight’s butt thanks to Lysithea) but I think I know enough of its plot to be able to write what I have planned. Be prepared for the angst :3

Byleth dreamed of Dimitri one night.

They dreamed they were in the monastery courtyard, right outside the Blue Lions classroom. Dimitri seemed so… happy. It was like he never found out the truth about Edelgard, like he never let the demons of his past control him. 

But before they knew it, a creature covered in the same dark smoke that had at one point killed the Empire general and Claude appeared behind him. Byleth didn’t even have the chance to warn Dimitri before the creature had engulfed him. Once the smoke had cleared, Dimitri was gone.

Byleth woke up right after that. They had woken up rather composed considering, but the sweat that covered their body was proof of the dream they just witnessed. 

They sighed, rubbing their eyes to adjust to the morning light. It was early, too early. They doubted anyone would be up at this hour.

It had been about a week since the Empire attacked Garreg Mach. For the most part, they have been treated well by their former students. They had let them keep their possession over the Sword of the Creator, as well as give them back their normal clothes. Raphael was always eager to invite Byleth to sit next to him at dinner time. Leonie always asked them to spar, wanting to make sure that they were still worthy enough to carry on Jeralt’s legacy. Ignatz had once asked them to pose so he could do a quick sketch, and surprisingly it turned out pretty well.

Claude, however, was another story. He was by no means rude to Byleth in any way; he was always kind to them when they had the chance to speak. But he always seemed so… distant. Byleth should understand, he was trying to hold together what was left of the Alliance during this war, after all. But still… Byleth suspected something was off.

Later that day, Byleth would actually be asked by Claude to join them for a meeting about their next plan of action. When they had agreed, Claude smiled, and said that he would see them after lunch. Lysithea would meet them on the way to said meeting, asking to walk with them the remainder of the way. She had been keeping a watchful eye on Byleth since they had joined forces; knowing just when they didn’t want to be left alone. Byleth appreciated the thought; out of all the Golden Deer students, Lysithea was the one that reminded them the most of their Blue Lions.

When the two got to the war council room, Claude greeted them with a smile, and they waited until the other Golden Deer arrived. 

Claude was a rather good strategist, which was surprising considering who mischievous he was in school. He spoke with complete certainty and knew exactly what he was doing.

“So, I am sure most of you are aware that after we were to take back Garreg Mach, we were to meet up with Judith for more forces.” Claude had his hands on the table. “However, sounds like the Valley of Torment has Kingdom-turned-Empire generals hanging around there, so I believe it’s best to scrap this idea.”

Claude had mentioned their previous plan to meet with Judith earlier in the meeting. Truthfully, Byleth didn’t even really know too much about Judith. They recalled hearing from someone that she was the leader of the Daphnel, a house in the Alliance, but other than that they didn’t know much.

Byleth was secretly thankful that this plan didn’t work out; from what they had heard, the Valley of Torment is a ravenous plain, with lava covering nearly every corner of it. They think they heard from Marianne once that it was said that the land was destroyed by the angry goddess. Byleth had a hard time believing that was true, but they couldn’t say it to Marianne’s face. 

“Judith has become increasingly wary of the kingdom army drawing closer.” Claude continued. “Alelli is dangerously close to Daphnel, so the army is most likely trying to get there. Judith seems confident that they won’t come any closer, but I still worry.”

“I wrote Judith a letter telling her that we would head her way to assist, but with the Empire right at the monastery’s door, I worry for its safety as well.” Claude placed his hands on the table, lost in his thoughts. “As risky as it is, I think we need to kill two birds with one stone, and split our forces.”

No one in the room verbally protested at first, but Byleth could tell the energy had shifted. “That is too much of a risk.” Lorenz was the first to speak up.

“It can go either way,” Leonie leaned back on her chair. “Worst case scenario is we lose both battles. Then what?”

“Once we make it to Judith, we will have her forces,” Claude defended. “If a few of us manage to sneak to Daphnel unnoticed, we can assist her, defeat the Kingdom-Empire dastards, then return here. Our forces will be doubled then.”

“And if they notice this and then send a full-blown attack here?” Lysithea spoke.

“They won’t notice.” Claude was confident, and Byleth had to admire that about him. “And by the time they do we’ll already be back at the monastery with Judith’s forces.”

“So, by the sound of it your planning on going to Daphnel?” Ignatz was writing down notes as he spoke. Byleth glanced over to see his elegant script handwriting.

“That’s the plan.” Claude raised his head, smirking at his classmates as they began to catch on. None of them seemed confident in his plan yet, but by the look of that smear, he was going to make them. “The army that will accompany me will be small, but with that size we should be able to sneak by without the Empire noticing. I’ll take our most skilled soldiers there with us, so me and Teach-“

“Hold on.” Byleth rose from their seat. “You plan on taking me with you?”

Claude grinned. “With that sword of yours, you should be able to help make a sweep of this army. Hopefully, with the combined forces of you, me, Judith and her army, we’ll be able to clear out that army in no time.”

“So the rest of us will stay here?” Raphael questioned. 

“In case more of those freaks in cloaks show up, Garreg Mach will need more forces than Teach and I.” Claude responded. “I trust every one of you enough to protect this place, and I trust the two of us to help Judith.”

The room was silent for a few moments, but Claude never lost his confidence. “I still think it’s too much of a risk, but I trust you.” Lorenz sighed. “The Alliance as survived the wrath of the Empire so far for a reason.”

“Just make sure not to blow it for us this time.” For the first time since the meeting started, Hilda spoke with a yawn. Byleth honestly forgot that she was there until that moment. 

After she spoke, the rest of the Golden Deer agreed unanimously. “Teach?” Claude waited for their response.

Byleth took a moment. Lorenz was right, this was a huge risk. But they understood where Claude was coming from. The Empire was attempting to surround them from all sides, so they had to act aggressively to get them to back off. “It’s our best option.” Byleth remained neutral.

The rest of the meeting was spent preparing for what was discussed. Claude assigned Hilda with picking out the best soldiers to accompany Claude and them to Daphnel, which made her groan. The rest of the Golden Deer were help to other preparations, all of which Claude expected to take place within the coming weeks. By the beginning of the month, they would head to Daphnel. 

Once the meeting had concluded, Byleth went to meet with Claude, but he had vanished. Byleth sighed, he must have know that they wanted to speak with him.

“If you’re wondering where Claude is, he’s probably at the stables,” Lysithea told them. “He does this after every meeting, he’s checking on his wyvern.”

Byleth thanked her before they headed off to the stables. As irritating as it was for Byleth to have to track him down, they supposed that it was in their best interest. They were curious about this white wyvern after all. 

When Byleth had finally made it to the stables, they saw just what Lysithea had told them. Claude was standing in front of his wyvern, which seemed to tower over him. Claude scratched the creature on its neck, then feeding it a large fish in a nearby bucket. “It’s a beautiful creature,” Byleth spoke up.

Despite not looking at them at all before their arrival, Claude didn’t seem surprised that Byleth was here. “You know you can get a better look at her, right?” Claude was snarky.

Byleth hadn’t even noticed until Claude pointed it out that they were far away from Claude and his creature. Byleth had always been cautious of wyverns; their father had warned them to beware of riders that rode on wyverns. The creatures were hard to tame, and when their rider finally calmed them, the wyvern would protect its rider with their life. Typically, wyverns were increasingly wary of any human other than the one that rode them.

But not letting their internalized fear get to them (not because they trusted Claude), they walked up to the creature. Byleth only noticed once they were close up that its scales glistened in the sunlight, and gave an almost reflective appearance. The wyvern let out a low snarl as Byleth grew closer, but it quickly silenced as Claude shushed it and rubbed his hand against their neck once more. 

When Byleth was within the creature’s reach, they looked to Claude, who grinned even wider than before. Slowly, he took Byleth’s hand before placing it underneath his own on the wyvern’s scales. They felt… different than Byleth had expected. Byleth almost expected the scales to cut into their hand as Claude moved their hands together, rubbing against the wyvern’s neck in circular motions.

“Good girl, Minerva.” Claude smiled. 

They wyvern almost seemed to purr in response to hearing its own name. Even though these creatures were much different than the dogs and cats Byleth was used to, it seemed wyverns shared some traits with them. 

“Her color is incredible.” Byleth commented. 

“Breathtaking, no?” Claude let go of their hand, allowing Byleth to scratch the creature on their own. “Albino wyverns aren’t treated as such in the wild however. This one was abandoned by her mother early on into her life. Thankfully I managed to find her, I fear she wouldn’t have survived otherwise. I found her when I was pretty young, her as well. I only started riding her not to long ago.”

As interesting as this story was, Byleth had to get to the point. “Why did you choose me to help protect Daphnel?” They continued to scratch Minerva.

“Come on Teach, you’re telling me you don’t know?” Claude chuckled almost. “It’s obvious your one of our strongest allies. Did I not say I wanted the best of the best for the army going to help Judith?”

“Is that the only reason?” Byleth questioned him. 

“What, you don’t trust me?”

“Not yet.”

Claude sighed. He took his hand off Minerva and began to run it through his hair. “Yet you continue to stay and help us without too many complaints.”

“It’s not like I have much of a choice.” Byleth followed his lead and took their hand of the wyvern. “You were right, it was either allying with you or trying to face the Empire alone. I may not know you that well from the academy days, but I know you well enough to know you always have an ulterior motive.”

“Well you just answered your own question, Teach.” Claude motioned Minerva that she was free to go, and the creature flew off toward the sky. “We don’t know each other too well, figured I could use the time to get to know my former professor better.”

The response almost seemed to quick and easy. 

“I mean, we just bonded now, didn’t we?” Claude looked toward the sky. Minerva almost seemed to blend in with the clouds up above. “Although I did all of the talking, it seems. Perhaps next time you can share some information about you?”

Byleth had to prevent themselves from chuckling. “Didn’t I just say I still don’t trust you? And you want to get me to open up?” 

“Was that truly asking too much?” Claude raised his hands in defense. “You wound me Teach. Whatever happened to equivalent exchange?”

Byleth wanted to groan. “Well, since it seems you’re more focused on joking with me rather than giving me answers, I’ll be taking my leave.” Byleth waved to him sarcastically, turning around in the process.

“Teach, wait.” Claude stopped them, but they did not turn to face him. “I mean it. I want to get to know you. I value our alliance; I truly do. But I also believe we can gain more so if we do learn to trust each other.”

Byleth squinted their eyes in thought. Was Claude implying he didn’t trust them either?

“I know I’m not Dimitri.” Claude was poking a sleeping bear bringing him up, but they did it anyway. Byleth exhaled, controlling themselves. “But I hope we can grow as close as you two were.”

Byleth snapped their head up. “Wait, what are you implying-“

But by the time Byleth turned around, Claude was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you weren’t aware, the name of Claude’s wyvern is in homage to the character from Shadow Dragon, as well as from the name of Cherche and Gerome’s wyvern in Awakening. As far as I am aware (I don’t know too much about the games before Awakening aside from what’s mentioned in Heroes) Minerva in Awakening is the only named wyvern I know of. I just decide to continue the tradition.
> 
> I am hoping the next update won’t take as long as this one. Honestly, I had some trouble writing this, so I took a break and began writing future chapters. I am hoping that updates won’t take any longer than a week from now on. 
> 
> I know this has kind of been a slow burn fic in more ways than one so far, but hopefully within the next few chapters the plot will begin to pick up. So please look forward to it!


	4. Judith

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So literally right after I posted the last chapter IS decided to screw me over and put not only best boy Dimitri on the legendary banner in FE Heroes but ALSO put best girl Celica on there as well. I was trying to save up for the eventual TS Dimitri but IS decided to screw me over. Please IS have mercy :’(
> 
> Please pray for my orbs. I only have like 80 -_-

Byleth dreamed of Dimitri again.

It was the same dream. It was always the same damn dream but they never grew used to it. It seemed like it became longer and longer the more that it played out in their sleep.

Claude, Byleth, and the small amount of Alliance soldiers Hilda had carefully picked out had been on the road to Daphnel for several days now. As expected, they had left the rest of the Golden Deer students to defend Garreg Mach from a potential Empire attack and left to help Juditih at the end of the month. 

It had been a month since they woke up

It had been a month without the Blue Lions.

Knowing that they would not be able to sleep, Byleth left their tent. It was pitch black out with the exception of the kindling fire that still flickered as the wind blew past. Sighing, Byleth picked up a nearby stick and began to poke the fire with it, unaffected by the embers that shot out towards them. They were very close to Daphnel at this point, odds once everyone awoke the next morning, they would be there by the afternoon. They could rest once they got there.

The fire got them thinking of Dimitri; that or perhaps they were not yet over the nightmare. The Golden Deer students had grown so much since Byleth had last seen them. They wondered how much Dimitri had changed these past five years. Had he grown out his golden blonde hair? Did he grow taller? He was always in the training grounds, had he gained more muscle? 

How many new scars had he gained?

“Can’t sleep?”

The voice didn’t startle them. Byleth turned to face Claude, who was peering down at them as they continued to poke the fire. “Maybe,” they didn’t give him a straight answer, “What of you?”

Claude yawned but didn’t look tired. Byleth wondered if he had ever gone to sleep. “Minerva likes to alert me when someone is walking around the camp after hours.”

Byleth honestly felt bad for possibly waking him. “I apologize…”

“Don’t need to,” Claude sat down next to them. “I’m not tired anyway.”

The flickering embers lite up his face, illuminating his tan skin. He looked to the sky, his eyes seemingly looking to every individual star. He probably lied about not being tired.

“I was a stubborn child,” Claude continued to look at the galaxy above them. “I always wanted to stay up until the dead of night. It irritated my mother, but she was a clever woman. When she saw I had not gone to bed, she would challenge me to count all the stars in the sky. If I managed to count them all, I could stay up as long as I like. But I always fell asleep before reaching one hundred. Never really caught on to her schemes.”

A chuckle left Claude’s lips. He lookied down from the sky and to the fire. “What about you Teach? Captain Jeralt do anything like that to you?”

Byleth knew what Claude was doing. They knew he was trying to get them to open up. Get them to trust him. They didn’t want to fall for his trap.

But Claude was clever. Now that their father was gone from this world, they wanted his memory to live on. So they willingly fell into Claude’s trap.

“My father let me fight my first battle with the mercenaries when I was ten,” Claude’s head instantly whipped over to them. “He and the mercenaries had practically been training me my whole life to fight, intentionally or unintentionally. They would spend one day teaching me the way of the sword, but didn’t know that once night fell, I would continue to watch them train when they thought I slept.”

Byleth closed their eyes at the memory. “I was never… an emotional child. I don’t recall ever crying or throwing a tantrum like others would. I’m sure you noticed I didn’t really show emotion at the monastery up until…”

Byleth drifted off. Even after all these years, Jeralt’s death still pained them. “Anyway, I stayed emotionless even in battle, and even in battle I still tried to learn. As I cut through bandits, I would see the fear in their eyes, hear the agony in their screams. I tried to learn how to emote through the people I killed. Although it never really worked.”

“But my father,” Byleth relished the word. “That didn’t really matter to him. It didn’t matter that I didn’t cry after my first kill, that I didn’t smile as I sent a knife through a bandit trying to escape their fate, that I didn’t laugh as the other mercenaries questioned why I seemed to not care. He accepted me through and through. And I will never forget that kindness as long as I draw breath.”

Claude didn’t answer at first, but Byleth could tell that he had been intently listening the whole time. “Teach… I didn’t know you could talk that much,” he placed his hand on the back of his head. “I think you’ve spoken more to me just now than you ever did back at the academy.”

Byleth knew that they were never close to Claude back then, but was that really true?

“Regardless, I’m glad you told me that,” Claude relaxed. “I think… I think Jeralt would be shocked to see you now. You still have that Ashen Demon in you, but you emote a lot more now.”

Byleth kept their eyes on the fire. “I suppose.” The fire grew and they felt its heat rush up against their face. “I have a good reason to. The Blue Lions… wherever they are now, I need to be diligent for them. I won’t stop until I find them… or until I find out what happened to them. They… they mean a lot to me. So, I guess my emotions seep through for them.”

Claude looked to the fire. “Well, I don’t know if my opinion really means anything, but I like when you emote. You’re a lot less petrifying.”

“I doubt you of all people find me frightening.” Byleth retorted.

“Maybe you’re right, but I am speaking for the other students,” Claude looked to them. “I swear anytime Bernadetta talked to you it looked like she was having a heart attack.”

The thought of the Black Eagle’s student filled Byleth with some sorrow. Bernadetta was always anxiety ridden, but she had good intentions. Byleth would never forget how she emerged from her room to give her condolences after Jeralt died. But she was a noble from the Empire, so she was probably fighting for Edelgard right now. “Emotions just didn’t come easily to me I suppose. If I did frighten other students, it was not my intention.”

“I believe you,” Claude looked back up at the stars. “But see now? Was that so hard to open up?”

Byleth knew at one point or another Claude would begin to brag. “I simply wished to talk about my father. I wasn’t ‘opening up’ for the sake of you.”

“Is that so,” Claude had returned his gaze to them. “Knew it wouldn’t be that easy, but admit, we bonded just now.”

Byleth rolled their eyes. “You’re going to have to give me more of a reason to trust you aside from telling me a story about how you counted stars until you slept.” 

“All in time, Teach.”

“You can start by not calling me that.” Byleth locked eyes with him. The green was unlike any shade they had ever seen. “I’m not your professor anymore. Just Byleth is fine.”

Claude paused. “That’s… going to take a lot of getting used to. But I’ll try my best… Byleth.”

Byleth nodded in response. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to trust Claude; trust was important among allies. Working alongside mercenaries for so many years taught them that. They had to admit, Claude really seemed to be trying to prove his worth, but he still hadn’t given them a good enough reason to put their trust in him.

But just as Claude said, maybe in time they would.

***  
Claude kept to his word and stayed up with Byleth until morning, which surprisingly wasn’t too long. They had probably only been up about three to four hours before they would normally otherwise, so they didn’t lose too much sleep. 

They were back on their travels just after the sun rose. The army moved quieter on this particular morning then they had the whole trip. They were so luck up to this point, Claude’s plan was seemingly working, the Empire hadn’t spotted them. They were not about to ruin it with Daphnel in walking distance. 

By the time Daphenl was in their sights, the sound of battle was growing ever louder, which caused the army to make haste. As if struck by luck, they made it just in time.

They had practically began engaging in battle the moment they stepped foot in Daphnel territory, immediately clashing blades and firing arrows off towards Kingdom-turned-Empire soldiers. The Daphnel soldiers seemed relieved at the Alliance’s presence, and used that relief to more confidently begin fighting off the Empire. 

The Empire soldiers seemed shocked upon the appearance of the Alliance. Claude’s plan seemed to have worked. A few of them even began to fall back as more and more of their soldiers began to unexpectantly meet their end. 

In the short amount of time Byleth had been awake, they had spent a good portion of that time dedicating to touching up on old skills and learning new ones. One of those new skills was picking up reason magic; they figured since they knew a little bit of faith magic, they might as well. Byleth began to blast fire spells at the enemy, clearing a few enemies out of their way before using the whip of the Sword of the Creator to clear out more.

When they looked over to Claude, he seemed to be doing just as well. They didn’t get to see it during the last battle they shared, but Minerva seemed at home on the battle field. Her quick flying worked well with Claude’s bow, the two of them clearing through enemies quickly. The wyvern seemed to have gotten so excited, she even at one point grabbed a soldier’s entire head in her mouth and flung the man in the other direction.

Surveying the area, it seemed Hilda did her job of picking out soldiers well, because they were doing work on the Empire army. By the looks of it, it seemed that the army they were assisting had held the Empire army off well enough. The Alliance army was the final push to send them back.

Byleth continued to move through the army, searching for the general, hoping to end this quickly. As they dug deeper and deeper into the battle, they noticed reinforcements emerging from the forest. By the looks of it, they seemed stronger than the others, but Byleth was confident in their abilities. They sliced through the soldiers until there was only one left, a mage who most likely had low defense, the perfect victim for their sword.

But just before Byleth could extend their whip and end it, a dagger came flying past their shoulder and struck the mage in the chest, sending them backwards and not moving instantly. Surprised, Byleth turned around to see who had thrown it, seeing a thin woman with dark hair pulled back in a high ponytail. She seemed pleased of her kill.

“Judith, taking care of the Empire pretty well on your own, aren’t we?” They heard Claude comment. By the sound of it, he wasn’t far behind them.

“Could’ve gone south if you didn’t show up,” Judith grinned as she drew her sword, cutting through an Empire soldier as they tried to attack her from the side. “Assuming you’re with him, right? Thanks for the help, we needed it.”

Byleth nodded to her in response before quickly turning the other direction. The general must have been hiding somewhere towards the forest line, they just had to find them.

After cutting through a few more soldiers, Byleth finally spotted what they believed to be the general. He was surrounded by several strong looking mages, but the man towered over them on his monster of a horse. He had a terrible looking cross shaped scar on the left side of his face. 

Byleth recognized them upon seeing his scar. Felix had spoken of him on occasion, but he consistently insisted that he was never a fan of him. Gwendal was his name, if Byleth’s memory was correct. He was a respected knight in the Kingdom, apparently had been fighting battles for as long as he lived. Shame that he decided to betray not only Felix but the Kingdom, Byleth would just have to kill him for it.

When Byleth charged at him, it was not the mages that tried to strike him first, but an arrow that was terribly shot at them, coming from the woods. It missed Byleth by a good foot, at least. How could a shot have been that bad? Byleth didn’t even bother to question it.

After that, no more arrows were fired at them, so Byleth made haste on the mages. They attempted to use a combined fire attack on Byleth, but they managed to dodge just in time. If anything, Byleth would suffer a few minor burns, nothing to worry about. Before Byleth could reach the first mage, an arrow came flying out of the sky, killing the mage instantly, and Byleth knew it was Claude. The two seemed to be on the same page, go after the general to end this quickly. 

Byleth cut through two mages with a single swipe, leaving just two left on both sides of Gwendal. But at this point, Byleth did not care about the mages; now that they knew the general had connections with Felix, they were only focused on him. Jumping into the air, Byleth came down on the general, the Sword of the Creator clashing with Gwendal’s axe.

“That strength…” Gwendal grunted. “Perhaps I have finally found a worthy opponent.”

Gwendal pushed Byleth off of him, sending them backwards before using his horse to quickly rush them again. Byleth dodged, noticing while doing so that Claude began to take care of the mages. Gwendal wore large armor, Claude would have to make a very precise shot at him if he wanted to do any damage at all, so it was good he focused on the mages. 

Gwendal’s horse made a quick turn to catch up to Byleth, with his horse nearly running them over. Byleth decided now would be their best opportunity to use magic, so they fired off a spell towards him. The thunder that struck Gwendal sent electricity across his armor, but it was going to take more than that to take him down. Using another spell, Byleth this time focused on the horse, attempting to use their sword to cut through its legs. But the whip missed, and the horse continued to run towards them.

Thinking quickly, Byleth jumped narrowly out of the way and used a fire spell on Gwendal, hitting him. This time, the general stumbled, and Byleth knew this was their best chance at an opening. They jumped again, this time using their sword to slice through the man’s armor. It cut through his skin, causing him to cry out in pain, but it was not deep enough to kill him. Before he could make another move, Byleth used a fire spell on the horse, causing the creature to buck and send Gwendal on the floor as it ran away. When Byleth turned to face the general, al they saw was an axe heading straight for their head-

Byleth felt the axe cut through part of their hair as it went past them. That was the second time an enemy had tried to catch them off guard with a throwing axe, they would have to be more careful.

But before Byleth could get their revenge on the man for that close call, they saw that there was an arrow through his head, and he fell to the floor. Apparently, Claude had finished the mages, because now that Gwendal was off his horse, he took the clear shot.

“That was close,” Claude breathed heavily. Byleth figured he probably had to hold his breath for a while to keep that shot. But Claude had hit him with a direct bullseye.

Part of Byleth wanted to be frustrated; Gwendal was the best chance they had thus far to find out any information about the Blue Lions. The general had known the noble students from the Kingdom, if anyone were to know their whereabouts, it would have been him. Byleth should have been angry, furious even. 

But then again, Byleth knew that their actions were sloppy facing Gwendal. That axe had nearly gone through their head, and Claude must have seen that. Claude basically saved their life. And they were thankful for that.

Perhaps they could learn to trust one another after all.

***  
Byleth liked Judith.

After the fight at Daphnel, Judith decided to join them, going against Claude’s protests. Apparently, the retainer that had been looking over Claude’s territory was also requested by Judith to look after hers.

Personality wise, Judith was the complete opposite of her father. She consistently joked with Claude, referring to him as a boy, which visibly annoyed him. Considering Claude always found ways to get under the skin of his colleagues, seeing him on the other end of it was increasingly satisfying to Byleth.

“So, you were Claude’s professor, right?” Judith never seemed to quiet during the trip, but she was so entertaining Byleth didn’t mind.

“I didn’t teach his class personally, but our classes collaborated several times,” Byleth replied.

“Bet he still caused you trouble, didn’t he?” 

Byleth recalled one time, they had entered Ashe in a bow tournament at his request. They were offering up a silver bow as the grand prize, and nearly every student at Garreg Mach sought after it. Claude and Ashe ended up being the final two. In the battle, Claude had grazed Ashe’s cheek with an arrow, and instantly after Ashe’s face welled up like a balloon. The referee examined Claude’s arrow after the fact and saw that it was coated in a poison that caused instant swelling. Apparently, Claude wanted the silver bow a little too much, and was immediately disqualified upon the discovery. No one ended up winning that bow, and the swelling to Ashe’s face didn’t go down for almost a week. 

“Very,” was all Byleth said on the matter.

“Haha! Open and honest, I like that,” Judith laughed. “How’d you manage to get stuck with Claude?”

Claude didn’t let Byleth answer. “Judith, please. We are almost at the monastery; can’t these last few steps be in peace?”

“Oh, shut it, boy.” Judith responded to him. “So, got any embarrassing stories-“

The sound of a screeching wyvern stopped Judith from continuing. Byleth looked up at Minerva, who was now flying down towards them, clearly on edge from the sound. The sound was too far away to have been her. In fact, it sounded like it was coming from-

Claude seemed to have made the realization at the same time as Byleth, because they both quickly ran to the edge of the woods where they could see the monastery in full view. 

It was still off in the short distance, but they both saw the smoke coming from Garreg Mach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn’t mean for this chapter to be so long, but writing Claude and Byleth interactions was too much fun, so I couldn’t help myself. 
> 
> Now you may be thinking, why didn’t Byleth use a Divine Pulse to attempt to get information out of Gwendal? Well short answer: Gwendal can GTFO. I hated fighting him in Azure Moon because Rodrigue just had to spawn right next to him on his stupid horse and charge at him. You are pretty much forced to kill Gwendal right then and there or Rodrigue’s stupid AI gets him killed. So if the game forces me to kill the man right away and then end the chapter right after without being able to use a Divine Pulse to kill the other enemies for EXP or chests, I AM TOO GOD DAMN IT.
> 
> Anyways, next chapter is when the real fun starts. We are going into full on canon divergence after this, so please look forward to it!


	5. Reunion at Dawn

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> … Chapter five… Golden Deer maddening… can F off…
> 
> So, I wrote about half of this chapter right after I posted the last one. But… I hated it, so I deleted it all and started over. I had to stop myself several times from calling Byleth she/he because this step back threw me off. So again, apologies if one slipped through the cracks.

Before they left for Daphnel, Leonie had described the worst-case scenario. They could either protect Garreg Mach and Daphnel successfully, or they could lose both. 

This wasn’t exactly that, but it definitely felt like it. 

The black smoke emanated from Garreg Mach sent chills down Byleth’s spine. The building wasn’t on fire, thankfully, but there was clearly some kind of battle occurring there. They were still quite a bit of ways away from the Church, but they could see wyverns and Pegasus fighting in the distance, as well as an occasional magic attack being fired towards them. 

Next to them, Byleth heard Claude curse and then he called forth his wyvern. Minerva made it down to him swiftly. “I am going on ahead,” he said. “Get Judith and the others over there as quick as you can.”

“Claude wait-!”

But by the time Byleth called out to him, Claude was already overhead, soaring towards the monastery as quick as Minerva’s wings would let him.

It was then Byleth’s turn to curse as they motioned for Judith and her army to follow them. Byleth knew the quickest way to the monastery from here, and headed towards there. If they ignored how well the army was following them and just hoped they would trail fast enough, the run there would only take a few minutes. Byleth only hoped that a few minutes was enough time. 

Byleth ran so fast at one point they slid in some mud and fell, only to get back up and begin running again. The pain in their ankle didn’t bother them, at this point they were running on pure adrenaline. They didn’t even bother to let the soldier who called out for them that they were okay.

As Byleth ran, they could only think about the fate of the Golden Deer students. In the short time that they had gotten to know them, the students offered them such kindness. Byleth began to think of now Lorenz would vent to them about his father. How Leonie would request stories of their father. How Hilda would cherish a letter her brother sent, telling his sister how proud he was of her.

Byleth already lost the Blue Lions, they were not about to lose the Golden Deer students too. 

Several agonizing minutes later, Byleth finally made it to the front of the monastery. They took a moment to glance back briefly; the army wasn’t in their sight, but they could hear them. It would have to be good enough, because Byleth stormed into the doors of Garreg Mach with the Sword of the Creator ready to fly.

Except, there wasn’t anyone too attack when the doors opened. The marketplace was empty, so clearly something had happened. Byleth recalled one of the shopkeepers they had grown quite fond of, a young woman with fire red hair, who would never leave her store unattended. “Time is money!” she would say. But she was no were in sight. If she wasn’t here, then clearly something made them all leave.

Taking no time to waste, Byleth began to run towards the stables, which was when they finally saw signs of a fight. There were several Alliance soldiers on the ground, clutching their wounds as they continued to bleed. All of them were alive, from what Byleth could tell. As thankful as they were that they were all alive, Byleth found it strange that the Empire hadn’t bothered to kill any of the soldiers off.

Hoping that Judith’s army would come by here and heal them, Byleth continued to run. They could hear fighting occurring in the distance, the sound of clashing metal and faint grunts filling their ears. They had to get there. 

Byleth finally sound the source of the fighting in the courtyard right outside of the classrooms. Alliance soldiers were clashing with figures dressed in dark robes that hooded their faces. Were these people allied with the mage that killed that Empire general right after they woke up?

Nearly out of their vision, Byleth saw Lysithea fighting alongside Ignatz, their magic and arrows flying in the air in an attempt to hit their target. They were alive, at least, but they were the only ones Byleth saw here. The rest of the Golden Deer must have been elsewhere. 

Upon seeing them, Byleth wasted no time assisting them, slicing through opponents with their weapon. The Sword of the Creator cried as it cut through several of the robed figures, but Byleth paid no mind to it. All that mattered in this moment was protecting the Golden Deer.

It was after Byleth had killed several robed figures when they saw Abigail, the cleric that helped restore them to full health just before they woke up. She was cowering in a corner, with a robed figure wielding a sword about to strike her.

Byleth didn’t even think. They extended the whip of the Sword of the Creator and sliced through the man, hitting him in the side of his chest. The attack was so powerful it had tattered the robes in an instant. He fell to the ground, clutching his wound as he gasped for breath.

Byleth ran towards Abigail and crouched down to her level. Some of the man’s blood had splattered on her white uniform as well as her face. The look of terror she wore was enough to make Byleth almost feel fear. “Are you alright?” They asked her.

Abigail nodded, but Byleth knew that she was just saying that. Glancing at her, Byleth did not notice any noticeable injuries, so she was fine, physically. Good, the cleric had helped Byleth when they couldn’t themselves, so they owed her that much.

Byleth stood back up. Behind them, they heard the man they just strike down gasping, as if he was trying to say something. Byleth didn’t want to give them any pity, but they looked down at him, letting their eyes be the last thing he saw-

Byleth stopped.

They felt vomit rising into their throat when they saw who the man was. He had grown up, since the last time Byleth saw him. His weak, orange eyes stared at them, lifeless as his strangely parted hair fell into his face. For a brief moment, Byleth believed they were in denial, but that quickly subsided. They knew him. 

And they just killed him.

Byleth heard another voice, another one that was familiar, before they used a Divine Pulse. The action was so fast that Byleth felt lightheaded, for a moment. But they couldn’t waste time feeling faint, they had to stop this fighting.

Byleth was once again standing at the edge of the courtyard, spotting Lysithea and Ignatz in the distance. They took a deep breath; they used the Divine Pulse so fast they lost their train of thought for a moment.

“Stop!” Byleth yelled when they finally gained back their composure. “Stop the fighting!”

Looking to where Abigail once was, they saw she was still in the corner, trying to defend herself as Byleth’s former student came towards her. Of course he wouldn’t listen. Byleth practically flew in front of the cleric, stopping the man with the block of their sword. His attempt at killing the cleric was so strong it sent shock waves between the teacher and student, making the hood on his head fly off.

His orange eyes were full of life once again as they stared appalled at their former teacher.

“You…?” Felix’s voice cracked as Byleth pushed his blade off of theirs.

“I told you to stop the fighting,” Byleth growled. They didn’t even have time to be thankful for his presence. They were beyond happy to see that Felix was alive, but the reunion could wait. “Call off your men, now!”

Felix obeyed. As he did, the familiar voice from before called his name again, running over to him as fast as her legs could carry her. She’d grown very little, if not at all, since the last time Byleth saw her.

Once she laid eyes on Byleth, she stopped dead in her tracks, removing her hood from her head. Her orange hair had grown out, and Byleth could see her blue-tinted eyes were full of tears. “Professor-“ Annette’s voice cracked as well. “You’re… Alive?”

“P-Professor?” Another voice they recognized. Byleth looked towards the Blue Lion’s former classroom as another figure emerged from within. Her hood was down now as well; her blue hair was up in a bun, and Byleth was pleased to see that the bags under her eyes were no longer as prominent. Byleth could only figure she didn’t want to fight her former classmates, so she hid inside the classroom. Marianne was always sensitive like that. 

At this time, Lysithea and Ignatz had rushed to them as well, the shocked expressions on their faces saying enough. “This is no time for a reunion,” Byleth began, turning back to Abigail, who now stood. “Work with Marianne to heal any of the injured soldiers. I saw a number of wounded near the stables, one of you head there. They are not our enemy.”

Abigail nodded without a word, running towards the now halted army with Marianne following behind her. Byleth then turned back to her students. “The others... are there more of you here?”

Felix shuddered. Byleth had never seen him so nervous. “They are near the Church.”

Without another word, Byleth began running there, with the Blue Lions and Golden Deer students following behind. Byleth was never one to pray to the goddess, but in this moment, they were praying that everyone was safe. 

When they made it to the bridge of the Church, Byleth was quick to notice her former Blue Lions students hiding beneath the hood. A young boy firing his arrows towards Leonie, who rode her horse towards him, dodging out of the way. Leonie had grazed the bow wielder on the shoulder, but a nearby healer worked her magic, Byleth hearing her sweet voice speak the spell. They saw a man riding a horse with a unique looking lance fighting with Lorenz, the two horses galloping towards one another. A young man riding a wyvern helped another healer avoid Raphael’s fists, the healer only yawning in response.

Byleth’s wanted to weep.

“Stop fighting!” They yelled, receiving backup from the students following them. Time seemed to have stopped in that moment.

“Professor?” Hilda’s voice made Byleth look to her. The pink haired maiden was holding another cloaked figure in her arms, her axe pointed towards her neck. Byleth saw the figure’s green hair peering out from beneath. 

Panic instantly set in. If she was here, her brother couldn’t be far behind. And he would surely be filled with rage upon seeing his sister in danger. “Hilda-“

But it was too late. In seconds, Hilda was being picked up by the shoulders by a man riding a wyvern, her screams cancelling out the creature’s screeches. The creature had made little to no noise as it came down, taking everyone by surprise. As the wyvern brought her into the air, Hilda had let go of the green haired woman, who looked like she hadn’t aged a day since Byleth last saw her. Hilda pleaded for the man to let her go as they soared higher into the air. 

“You must have a death wish if attempt to harm her like that.” Byleth heard the familiar voice threaten. Hilda continued to apologize as the two of them flew higher into the air. 

Byleth ran to the edge of the bridge, trying to get as close to the two of them as possible. “Seteth!” Byleth yelled. “Stop!”

The wyvern rider’s head whipped over to them. Byleth could not see his face, but they safely assumed he was surprised. When he got closer to the ground, he dropped Hilda a little earlier than expected and she fell to the ground. Clearly, he was still bitter that she had tried to harm his sister. Hilda seemed stunned, and angry that her hair was now tangled from the flight, but otherwise alright.

Byleth looked to all of their students once Seteth’s wyvern had landed. They all began removing their hoods, all equally shocked upon seeing their professor. Before Byleth could say another word, they heard another wyvern screeching, one that was not of their Blue Lions, but that they recognized none the less. 

“See, I told you we were not the enemy.” Claude stated to the woman who was riding a Pegasus.

When the woman landed, she too removed her hood. Her blonde hair that once rested in a braid behind her back was now cut just above her shoulders. “Like you gave me any reason to trust you,” Ingrid stroked her Pegasus. “But regardless, Professor, I am thrilled to see you.”

“I’ll be damned, Ashe was right,” Sylvain jumped off his horse. “It’s great to see your lovely face again.”

“He was right?” Byleth questioned. 

“I was fighting alongside General Gwendal.” Ashe stepped forward. “It was only to get some inside intel; I wasn’t expecting to see you there.”

Ah, so that poorly shot arrow wasn’t some random archer, it was Ashe. He probably noticed just before letting the arrow fly that it was their professor and changed its course just in time.

“Once I saw it was you, I retreated and informed everyone else.” Ashe continued. 

“It’s not that we didn’t want to believe him, Professor,” Mercedes held her hands together as if she was praying. “It’s just… you were gone for so long, we couldn’t believe it.”

“Especially considering he said you were fighting alongside him,” Felix pointed to Claude, anger in his voice. 

“Woah, woah,” Claude held his hands up in defense. “I found your professor, if anything you should be thanking me.”

Byleth couldn’t help but laugh. Seeing their students interacting with Claude and the others made them think back to the better times at Garreg Mach.

“Anyways,” Linhardt came forward, his hair had grown out some. Like Marianne, Linhardt asked to join the Blue Lions not long after the Battle of Eagle and Lion. Byleth recalled striking him down with the Crest of Flames during the battle. Apparently, the attack was so fascinating Linhardt claimed he had to join the class for ‘crest research.’ But he was a welcomed member of the Blue Lions. “Mind telling us where you’ve been all this time Professor? Surely it was not with the Golden Deer.”

Byleth paused, knowing they wouldn’t like their answer. “I’ve been sleeping,” they said, “For five years and a month as a matter of fact.”

“Come on now Professor,” Sylvain joked. “You can’t be serious!”

But Byleth’s silence was proof enough. 

“They’re serious.” Seteth stepped down from his wyvern, which Flayn was currently petting. 

“I’m so sorry,” Byleth couldn’t help but let tears fill their eyes. “I don’t know why it happened; it just did. I only work up about a month ago. Claude and the rest of the Golden Deer found me, I figured teaming up with them was my best bet at finding all of you.”

“It’s true!” Byleth heard Hilda screech from the side. 

“Now tell me,” Byleth began. “Where have all of you been?”

“Starting a rebellion.” Byleth looked beyond their students. Walking forward was Gilbert, Annette’s father. Byleth called out his name in surprise. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

“What have you been doing?” Byleth continued to plague them with questions.

“Working from the shadows, mostly.” Gilbert answered. “As I am sure you are aware, most of the Kingdom is under the influence of the Empire now. Felix’s father is doing his best to protect what’s left. While he’s doing that, we have been gathering up forces and taking down the Empire little by little.”

Byleth now had to ask the question. Considering two of their students were not here, they were afraid to know the answer. But they needed it. “What of Dimitri? And Dedue?”

Gilbert paused. “Dedue has been missing for several years now, we have no clue of his whereabouts.” 

Byleth frowned at this. Dedue was always distant, but he was a kind young man dedicated to Dimitri. They hoped that the Duscar native was alright.

“Dimitri…” Gilbert trailed off. “I thought I knew where he was. I was virtually sure of it. After all these years I finally thought I found him. But as you can see, I was wrong.”

“We thought he was here.” Annette began to speak for her father. “By the time we found out it was just in time for the Millennium Festival too. But when we got here, all we found were dead Empire soldiers.”

“Is it possible he could have been here?” Byleth questioned.

“We believe so,” Gilbert responded. “I was so sure he was here. But by the time we arrived he was gone. The trail for now has gone cold, but we believe he is alive, Professor.”

Byleth breathed a sigh of relief. 

“When Ashe heard you were here,” Sylvain began, “We weren’t about to let another trail go cold. Worst case scenario, we thought you were being held here against your will. So, we snuck in and attacked, looking for answers.”

“I think an apology for that is in order…” Ignatz whispered behind them. Byleth heard Lysithea punch him.

“We ran into some of the Alliance members a few times in these past few years.” Gilbert continued. “We didn’t know if they were friend or foe, so I apologize for the sudden ambush.”

What?

That couldn’t be right. Claude said he didn’t know what had become of the Blue Lions. But according to Gilbert, they had encountered each other before. 

“Wha-what do you mean?” Byleth asked, turning to Claude. “I thought you said you didn’t know what happened to them, Claude?”

Claude didn’t speak.

Just when Byleth had started to trust them.

And Byleth was furious.

Byleth wanted to kill him. They wanted to tear him limb from limb for lying to them. And if it were not for Gilbert and Seteth stopping them, they would’ve. “You lied to me!” They screamed. “You said you didn’t know!”

Hilda was stepping in front of Claude now, her eyes shut. Byleth knew from her expression that she knew too; she knew Claude was lying. But she said nothing. The other Golden Deer, who were slowly gathering around Claude, all shared that look. 

“Okay, so, I lied,” Claude admitted. “But-“

“You told me to trust you!” Byleth was screaming. Sylvain stepped in to help hold them back. “I tried to trust you while you were lying to my face!”

“I say let them at him,” Felix commented on the side. Annette gave him a glare in response.

“Look Teach,” Claude pushed Hilda out of the way. “I know what I did, alright? But I didn’t know where they were-“

“But you could’ve told me!” They pushed the men trying to hold them back off. They didn’t go to attack Claude, but they wanted to. “Instead of telling me you didn’t know, instead of making me fear for their lives, you could have told me!”

“And then what, Byleth?” This was the first time Claude had used their name without force. Too bad it was when they were in the middle of them fighting. “What, I tell you I know they’re alive and then risk you going on your own, to try and find them yourself?”

Byleth stopped. “What else?” Claude continued. “You force me to stop everything to try and look for them? And what if didn’t find them, Byleth? Then all that time wasted we could’ve been spending trying to win this war!”

Was… Was Claude making a point?

“Claude…” Hilda tried to calm him. Byleth had never seen Claude this enraged, and judging by Hilda’s expression, she hadn’t either.

“You want to know the truth then, Byleth? The whole truth?” Claude’s fists were clenched together. “I took you to Daphnel to lure them out. I didn’t know where they were, but truthfully, I wanted to find them just as bad as you. I knew sending you to battle would’ve done just that. Sure, I wasn’t planning on them attacking us here, but at least my plan worked.”

Byleth’s mouth nearly dropped to the floor. It wasn’t their strength that made Claude choose them to go with him.

“But don’t you think for one second I did it so you could be reunited.” Claude’s words made Byleth enraged once more, but they did a better job hiding it. “The only thing I’m trying to do here is win this war. But the Alliance isn’t enough. I needed your precious Blue Lions because I need all the help I can get.”

“So… you used me?” Byleth wanted to lunge for him again.

“Call it what you will,” Claude admitted. “As strong as you are, you’re not enough to win this war. Trust me, I know. I’ve been fighting the Empire for over five years now.” He paused. “But I’m going to be honest, Byleth. I don’t care how angry you are at me for this. In the end my plan worked, which is exactly what I needed. So there, Byleth, you know the truth.”

Claude laughed. “But it seems I may have ruined it myself,” he stepped back. “I’m sure my yelling at you isn’t really making anyone want to ally with me now, isn’t it?”

Claude closed his eyes. Byleth didn’t say a word. He was calming down now. “Clearly, you have some discussion to do.” Claude relaxed. “I won’t try to ruin your reunion further, but know this. Allying is our best chance we have against the Empire. You may want to kill me right now, but that’s the truth.”

Claude motioned for the Golden Deer to follow him as they walked away. “I am going to go help my men,” he said. “I’ll be in the council room when you decide whether or not you want to win this war or not.”

The Blue Lions didn’t make a sound, only watched as Claude and the Golden Deer left.

“Well,” Sylvain broke the ice. “That was certainly something.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesus I couldn’t stop writing. Why is this so long… Hopefully I didn’t miss anything…
> 
> That was a lot of information to unpack, so anything that you are still wondering will probably be addressed in the coming chapters.
> 
> Linhardt… I love Linhardt. I was going to marry him in my Black Eagle’s playthrough but then Jeritza was released and ruined that whole plan. My male Byleth may be married to Jeritza now, but I still love Linhardt, and couldn’t bare parting with him. So, he was recruited to the Blue Lions as well. So the Blue Lions are the typical Blue Lions + Marianne and Linhardt. 
> 
> Also, I am sure you’re wondering, besides Dimileth, are there any other ships planned for this fic? I may or may not have alluded to some in this chapter, but I guess you’ll have to find out :)
> 
> Anyways, I probably won’t post again until after Christmas, so for all of you that celebrate it, have a good Holiday!


	6. Halfhearted Alliance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS BECAUSE CELICA CAME HOME!
> 
> Dimitri hasn’t yet (but of course Naga and Peony did… and in an ironic twist Edelgard did too) but I WILL KEEP TRYING.
> 
> So two things, one I fixed a few typos in the last chapter (because there were too many) Plus a little mistake in an earlier chapter with Claude about his mom. Second, I think I have officially planned out the rest of this fic. Unless I condense things and/or add things, this story should have 30 chapters total. I still want to make sure that everything that I have planned will make sense in terms of lore, but things are getting there!

“How the hell did you deal with him these past few months?”

Byleth didn’t raise their head from their palms for Felix’s comment. As much as they missed him and the other Blue Lions, they weren’t in the mood. That, and they were still not over killing him during their last battle.

Once Claude and the other Golden Deer left, the Blue Lions decided to go into the Church to discuss what happened and catch up. Byleth sat on a pew with their elbows to their knees, the palm of their hands holding their head. They emoted so much during their fight with Claude, draining them. 

Sighing, Byleth finally rose their head to answer Felix. “Well, he was surprisingly pretty pleasant before I found out he lied to me.”

Byleth paused, leaning back on their pew. “They… they all were. But I don’t blame the rest of the Golden Deer for what Claude did. He probably talked them all into it.”

“I don’t think so either,” Marianne added. She was sitting on a pew behind Byleth. “Raphael and Ignatz are too nice to lie to you. And Lysithea always talked fondly of you. And Hilda… no, she wouldn’t. Leonie and Lorenz I am more questionable of, but even then I doubt it.”

“Claude’s always been about scheming and turning things in his favor,” Sylvain crossed his arm and leaned up against a column. “This was most definitely his idea.”

“I don’t blame him for wanting to win the war…” Ashe trailed off. “But lying to you was not the way to go about it.”

“Especially using the using-you-to-get-to-us part.” Linhardt laid on a pew. Byleth honestly thought he was sleeping this whole time, but turned out he wasn’t.

“Enough about this,” Byleth didn’t want to hear about Claude anymore. “What have you all been doing since I was gone?”

“Forming the rebellion, trying to hold off the Empire from invading the Kingdom further…” Gilbert stopped. Byleth knew what was coming next.” And finding his Highness.”

“So obviously you guys don’t believe the story that he murdered his uncle?” Byleth asked.

“Of course not.” Felix shot up. “Who do you take us for, fools?”

Annette punched him on the arm. “Felix, we just got the Professor back. Please don’t be rude.”

Felix grunted. “That Cornelia’s a witch too.” He rubbed his arm. “Tried to tell my father to his face of that fake story she’s telling. She’s senile if she thinks she can convince my father of all people the Boar would do that.”

Byleth remembered Rodrigue fondly. They remembered Dimitri telling them how he was basically a second father to him. Byleth only wished that he had been there for Dimitri sooner, perhaps if he did, Dimitri wouldn’t have been driven as mad when he found out the Flame Emperor’s identity. But even if that slim ‘if’ were true, Byleth would never hold it against Rodrigue.

“Where is your father now?” Byleth feared the answer.

“He’s protecting what’s left of the Kingdom,” Ingrid replied for Felix. Byleth was relieved that Rodrigue was safe. 

“So while he was there, the rest of you have been forming this rebellion?” Byleth hated asking so many questions.

“Been traveling all of Fodlan to do so,” Mercedes answered. “We’ve been trying to salvage as many Kingdom Houses that we can, all the while gathering troops and supplies.”

“And looking for Dimitri and Dedue?” Byleth just needed reassurance.

“Truthfully, don’t even know where to begin in finding Dedue. We have no leads on him.” Gilbert sadly stated.

“As for Dimitri, I must apologize again, Professor.” Gilbert began to pace. “I thought I tracked him down. Everything pointed to him being here about three months ago, so we came to look. But alas, he was not.” 

“We were just going to stay at the Church until our next plan of action, but Rodrigue required our assistance in the Kingdom, so we were forced to leave.” Seteth hadn’t spoken ever since arriving in the Church. His wyvern appeared mildly injured during the earlier fight, so he was trying to calm it while Flayn healed the beast. “It was a shame it happened when it did. By the sound of it the Alliance arrived here right after; they could’ve even noticed we were here and waited until we left for all we know. If things didn’t happen when they did, who knows: we could’ve been the ones to find you.”

“There is no use dwelling on the ‘what ifs,’ brother.” Flayn wiped from sweat off of her forehead. Perhaps the injury was worse than what Byleth originally thought because she seemed to be exhausting a lot of healing magic. “We must simply accept that it didn’t happen and work with what did.” Flayn rose from her position. The wyvern appeared healed now. “The Professor has returned to us, that’s all that matters.”

“Do you have any leads on what happened to Dimitri?” Byleth went back to the subject. 

“Considering this place was littered with Empire soldiers when we got here, it’s safe to assume the Empire has something to do with it,” Ingrid answered. 

“They also have Lady Rhea,” Flayn spoke up.

“Rhea?” Byleth was shocked. “Claude told me she was missing.”

“You still want to believe what that scoundrel says?”

Annette hit Felix again.

“We have reason to believe Edelgard is holding her captive.” Seteth explained. “She hates the Church and the Archbishop. We believe she is still alive now, but considering Edelgard’s hate for her… I fear for her safety. If I could, I would prioritize helping her above all else, since I don’t know how long Edelgard will keep her alive. But I understand we have other priorities, and Edelgard most likely has her in Enbarr… going there would be suicide.”

Byleth could tell Seteth hated saying those words, especially upon seeing Flayn’s pained face when he spoke. But he spoke the truth. 

“If we want any chance of accomplishing any of our goals, we must make haste.” Gilbert affirmed. “I would love for this reunion to be more of a happy one, but we must take action as soon as possible.”

Byleth inhaled. They didn’t like what they were about to say. In fact, they hated it. And they knew that the Blue Lions wouldn’t like it either. But it had to be said. 

“So, we have to team up with the Allaince-“

“Absolutely not.”

Byleth looked to Felix, who wore a face of anger and disgust on his face. Looking around, the other Blue Lions didn’t exactly look happy either. 

“We don’t have a choice.” Byleth was firm in their response. “Look, I don’t want to team up with them either, but doing so is the best chance we have at winning the war, saving Rhea, and finding Dimitri and Dedue.”

Out of the corner of their eyes, Byleth saw Marianne play with her fingers. “We do need the help,” she practically whispered. Byleth felt bad for her, being a former Golden Deer, she must have been so conflicted. 

“You really want to team up with him? After what he did to you?” Felix retorted.

“I don’t like what he did,” Byleth stood up. “And none of you have to like him either. But an alliance with them would give us our best chance.”

Annette grabbed Felix on the arm. “They’re right Felix,” she said softly. “Don’t make irrational decisions based on how you feel. We have to think of what’s best.”

Byleth’s eyes narrowed. Was Annette always so close with Felix?

They must have grown closer in these five years, because somehow Annette got through to him. “All of you are foolish,” he looked away. “But apparently I can’t change your minds.”

“I’m with Felix on this one,” Sylvain grabbed his shoulder. “But I agree, its our best chance.”

“I agree.” Mercedes added. 

“Same.” Ashe continued.

“It’s the best strategy.” Linhardt chimed. 

Ingrid huffed. “I’m not a fan of this either, but I will go along with it.”

“If it means getting Rhea back safety, I will stand by this.” Seteth said. 

“And I will stand by my brother.” Flayn pat the wyvern on the head. 

Byleth nodded with a light smile. Her Blue Lions remained loyal after all.

***  
Byleth hated seeing Claude in the council room. 

He sat there so smug to them. His position was identical to the one-time Byleth remembered inviting him to tea. He was too comfortable, but he had to grin on his face. He just stared deadpanned at them as the rest of the Blue Lions came into the room. 

The only Alliance members in the room were Hilda and Judith. Hilda stood behind Claude with her eyes closed. She looked worried. Judith sat to Claude’s right. Byleth could only assume that Claude had filled her in on what happened if she was here, but Byleth could not tell where she stood on the matter. 

“So, do you want to win this war or not?”

Byleth wanted to kill him. And based on the rumbling they heard behind them; Felix must have wanted to too. Byleth figured that Annette held him back once more. 

Byleth breathed. They had to set an example for their students. “We will work with you.”

Claude lowered his hands. He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, although he tried to hide it. “I am glad we could come to some sort of agreement.” He stated simply. “As much as I would love to discuss our next plan of action now, it’s clear there is still some tension lingering here.”

Byleth said nothing, but they did nod.

“I’ll give us all a week to relax,” Claude sighed. “Hopefully then we can talk civilly among one another.”

Byleth crossed their arms. 

“That is all.” Claude dismissed them.

And so, they left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter. I would have just added this to the next chapter, but if everything goes as planned, there will be a lot of character interactions next, so that could go on for a while lol.
> 
> So I forgot to mention one thing here last chapter and also want to say one thing regarding this chapter. For last chapter: I LOVE Seteth. Literally so much. I thought he was going to be some angry cleric but instead he’s a badass wyvern riding daddy. I know he’s kind of an asshole, but he’s my asshole. I think the fandom can make him out to be a little too much of an asshole sometimes, so I am hoping to not do that here. I mean, he basically starts showing how much he cares for Byleth in chapter 4. So he’s a huge softy IMO
> 
> Second, I am sure you’ve noticed, but I love NetteFlix. I am Felix x Sylvain trash and I admit it, But Felix x Annette is SO underrated and wholesome. So they are going to be cute here. Sorry not sorry :3


	7. The Connection

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dimitri still hasn’t come home :(

The rest of the week proved… Interesting for Byleth.

Truthfully, they should’ve known. They barely had time to have a pleasant reunion with the Blue Lions. Byleth didn’t really get the chance to see just how much they had grown over the past five years. They were no longer the kids trying to make it through their schooling at the monastery. They were grown adults trying to survive in the world as they knew it. But Byleth didn’t really get to process that until the week went by.

The first peculiar thing that occurred shouldn’t have been surprising at a glance. Byleth was in a meeting with Seteth discussing Rhea that went a little longer than expected. By the time they finished, it was well past midnight. Byleth decided that it wasn’t worth it going to sleep that night.

To pass the time, Byleth decided to go to the library. They recalled that before their over five-year slumber, there was a book they were particularly fond of that they never got to finish. They hoped it was still there.

When they got to the library, they fully expected it to be empty. Who else would be up at this hour? But to their surprise, there was someone in the library. But not to their surprise, it was Linhardt.

He was sleeping, in fact, sleeping may have been an understatement. Byleth would have believed he was dead if it were not for his increasingly loud snoring. Most of his long green hair was buried under a book, with the few strands of hair that were showing clearly a mess. It looked like he had built a fort around himself with the number of books he collected.

Byleth forgot how many times they had scolded him to get his rest back at the monastery. Linhardt was an intelligent young man with a brilliant mind, but he never got to fully show it with the lack of sleep he received. Most people at the monastery thought he was lazy student, but he was anything but that.

Part of Byleth didn’t even know why they bothered; if he didn’t listen to them back in school, they doubted he would listen now that a war was going on. But their teacherly instincts were too much to ignore.

Lightly, Byleth tapped him on the shoulder. When he didn’t budge, they tapped again. Byleth nearly jumped back when Linhardt shot up.

“Don’t run from me!” He shouted, with Byleth quickly shushing him. He looked even worse than Byleth originally thought. He had dried droll emerging from his mouth, and the bags under his eyes were so dark it looked like he rubbed charcoal underneath them. When he saw his professor standing before him, he quickly tried to compose himself. “Professor… I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“And I expected you to fix your sleeping schedule after all this time, but apparently I expected too much.” Byleth retorted.

“You wound me, Professor.” Linhardt leaned back in his chair, picking up the book that was formerly on his head. “There is simply too much to learn. How could anyone find the time to sleep when there is so much information to indulge in?”

Sighing, Byleth patted him on the head. He may have grown some, but he hadn’t changed at all. “Go to bed, Linhardt.”

“I could say the same to you,” Linhardt was sassy with his response. “Instead of arguing for a useless cause, why don’t you sit with me?”

Byleth wanted to scold him again, but they supposed it was quite useless. Linhardt clearly was not going to budge. Byleth went to the section the book they longed for last was, but it was nowhere to be found. Frustrated, but admitting that they should have expected it, Byleth picked up another nearby book, and returned to the table.

It turned out the book they picked out wasn’t that interesting, so Byleth didn’t do much of reading. By the constant sound of pages turning, Linhardt certainly was. “So, who were you trying to do an experiment on now?” Byleth asked him.

Linhardt looked up from his book. “Did I say something when I awoke?”

Byleth nodded. “Something about not running from you?”

“Oh, that.” Linhardt looked away. “I was just trying to get answers out of Lysithea, nothing more.”

“Nothing more?” Byleth raised an eyebrow.

“Well you know she has two crests, Professor.” He was quick to respond. “I was always interested with her, but I never got the chance to speak with her much at the monastery. I figured I’d turn our alliance with the Alliance into something I can use to my advantage.”

“And what do you wish to gain from this?” Byleth began to play with a pen they found on the table.

Linhardt shut the book he was reading and picked up another one. “I’ve been doing some research in regards to some suspicious figures we have been encountering.” Byleth blinked slowly at his words. _Some research?_ “I believe you have run across them as well. Figures in black robes?”

Byleth’s attention was immediately grabbed by Linhardt. “Before I joined your class, they were the ones trying to steal the Sword of the Creator, correct? It’s also highly likely they were behind Flayn’s kidnapping. And, before she rudely ran away from me that is, Lysithea mentioned one of them killed an Empire general, someone they allied with, not to long ago, yes?” As he spoke, Linhardt flipped through the pages of his book.

“Have you found anything worth mentioning?” Byleth pondered his response. He was sure to have found something about these people.

“Alas, their black robes symbolize their ability to hide in the shadows,” he stretched. “We know that these three instances are more than likely done by the same perpetrators, but everything else I’ve come with are theories, at best.”

“Like?” Byleth was genuinely curious.

“Well, so far the best lead I have to go on is the fact that they wanted Flayn’s blood. A major crest of Cethleann is nothing to scoff at, but you would think they would be more interested in people like Lysithea, who has two crests. But they aren’t.” He cracked his knuckles. “These people must have some fascination with crests, but the question is why they seem to be so particular about them.”

Yawning, Linhardt continued. “I doubt these people are allying themselves with Edelgard because they have similar goals. Based on their actions, these people clearly have their own agenda, especially if they killed that Empire general. I thought maybe it was because of her crest, but you would think they would be more interested in Rhea then, since she possessed a major crest of Serios instead of a minor, but they completely ignored her during the Goddess’s Rite of Rebirth. Sure, Edelgard has her captive now, but you would think they would’ve wanted to take advantage of her crest earlier.”

“Ugh, these people are so confusing, all of this makes my head spin.” Linhardt admitted. “There has to be something in Edelgard that makes those robed freaks want to ally with her, but I just can’t figure out what.”

“Have you gone over research with Hanneman?” Byleth suggested. As it turns out, Hanneman, Manuela, and other key members of the church also allied themselves with the Blue Lions. The reason they weren’t with the rest of them when they invaded the church is because they were protecting their temporary base somewhere else in Fodlan. Since allying with the Golden Deer, however, they have come to the church as well.

“I’ve tried but every time I’ve gone to speak with him, he’s sleeping.” Linhardt began stacking books.

“I think that’s more your problem than his,” Byleth commented.

“Yes, yes, I know.” Linhardt rubbed his temple. “But… I can’t sleep until I figure this out. There has to be a connection, there just has to.”

As he rubbed his temple, Byleth noticed he began to drift off back to sleep. Rolling their eyes, Byleth forced Linhardt to stand. They were going to take him to his room if it was the last thing they did. “You can figure out the connection after you get some sleep.”

***  
Byleth went to go check on Linhardt periodically though the week. He kept to his word, every night Byleth would find him in the library, studying the night away. As tiring as it was for them, Byleth decided to continue to go every night as well for two reasons, to make sure he went to bed, and to bounce ideas off of one another.

One of those nights went by just like any other: Byleth had finished up another meeting (this time with Alois) and was walking to the library to meet up with Linhardt. However, on their way there, they noticed light coming from Manuela’s infirmary. Thinking that maybe Manuela was working late that night, Byleth decided to stop by.

Byleth opened the door only slightly. Manuela was nowhere to be found, and instead Felix and Annette were in the room.

“Felix, you can’t keep training like this,” they heard Annette say. “Sooner or later you’re going to lose all feeling in your hands.”

Byleth opened the door a little more. They couldn’t see Felix because Annette was in front of him, tending to his hands. By the looks of it, she was wrapping them in bandages.

“We are in the middle of a war,” Felix countered. “I have to keep training if I want the best chance of not dying.”

“Soon you’re not going to be doing any fighting if you keep this up.” Through the crack of the door, Byleth saw Annette put her hands on her hips. “I understand you need to train, but this late at night?”

Felix huffed. “When I can’t sleep, I train. And I haven’t been able to fall asleep because I have armies I need to worry about.”

Annette sighed. “Well, I can help you! I can make some calming tea, or maybe Mercie has some sleeping herbs-“

“Sing.”

Byleth had to cover their mouth.

“What?” Annette seemed flustered.

“I want you to sing for me.” Felix was determined. “Sing to me until I fall asleep. Your songs- I mean your voice- I mean- Ugh, forget I said anything.”

“No, no!” Annette was quick to dismiss that. “I… I’ll sing for you. If it helps you go to sleep, I will.”

“…Good.” Felix positioned himself on Manuela’s bed. “Start with the one about the library.”

“Ok.” Annette giggled.

And then she started singing a cheesy song about the library.

Byleth shut the door and practically ran to the library, seeing enough.

***  
“You know you’re wrong, right?”

Lysithea’s voice startled Linhardt and Byleth. It was the end of the week now. Every night, the teacher and student would meet in the library to discuss who these robed people were. Currently, Linhardt had set up a board trying to connect these robed figures to other members of the Empire.

“I beg your pardon?” Linhardt seemed offended. “You run away from me when I am trying to preform crest research and you come back to tell me I’m wrong?”

Lysithea shrugged. “I wasn’t ready to talk… But now I am.” She sat down. “But don’t think for a second it’s because of you, Linhardt. I am saying this because the professor needs to know… the truth. It just so happens the truth of my crests may help this mess.”

Lysithea referred to the board Linhardt created. Regardless of being annoyed by her, Linhardt was ready to listen, as was Byleth.

“The truth is… I know these people-“

“Excuse me?”

“Linhardt, please.” Byleth only now noticed Lysithea had tears in her eyes as she said this.

“Linhardt, let her speak.” Byleth, knowing something was wrong, reached for her hand. The two held them together across the table. She nodded in thanks.

“These people… they are worse than you think.” She sniffled.

Byleth could barely comprehend Lysithea’s story. She explained to them how the children of House Ordelia were used as experiments for these people. They would continue to mess with their blood through horrific crest experiments. Lysithea was the only survivor, with the experiments resulting in her two crests and white hair.

“When that mage killed the Empire general…” Lysithea trailed off. “I knew it was them. The moment I heard what that mage wore, I knew. If they are working with the Empire…”

“Pardon my interruption, but you said you got your white hair from these horrific experiments, correct?” Linhardt was beginning to piece things together.

Lysithea nodded.

It clicked in Byleth’s head as well. “Then… Edelgard.”

“I can’t be for sure…” Lysithea insisted. “I mean, I’ve never seen her use another crest aside from her minor crest of Serios. But… if she is working with them, and has white hair…”

“The connection.” Linhardt went to the board, pointing between the two. “Edelgard was a victim as well.”

“But why would she ally herself with them then?” Byleth wondered. “If they truly did this to her…”

“I don’t feel comfortable speaking for her.” Lysithea inhaled. “What she is doing is not right, but her being a victim of the same thing I had to go through… I have to feel some sympathy for her.”

“We have to tell the others about this.” Byleth stood from their chair. “These people… they may be allied with Edelgard but they seem to be working for their own cause. They could be pulling strings elsewhere. And if they are willing to go as far as to experiment on children, who knows what else they have planned.”

“Wait, please.” Lysithea made them sit. “There’s… something else you must know. I don’t know if it effects Edelgard, but it does effect me.”

Byleth listened, holding her hand. Linhardt, despite looking at the board, was listening as well. “As a result of my experiment, I… I fear I won’t live much longer. Five years at most.”

Byleth didn’t know what to say.

“So, I guess that’s why I’m telling you this now.” I have to make do with the time I have left, and this information won’t be useful if I took it to the grave with me-“

“You’re not dying.”

Byleth meant it.

“Professor… in order to do that you would have to remove my crests-“

“We will find a way to undo it. I won’t let you die after all this. And I doubt anyone else will either.” Byleth was insistent.

“I’ve done my fair share of crest research,” Linhardt sat down to hold her hand as well. “I may not have figured out a way to remove a crest, but I can find a way.”

“But… the chances of it being possible are slim.” Lysithea didn’t look at them.

“We will find a way.”

Byleth was not going to back down.

When Lysithea realized they were serious, she began to cry.

“Linhardt… Byleth… Thank you.”

***  
The tension in the council room was still high.

Claude sat at the head of the table, serious, with no smile on his face. The Golden Deer and Judith sat on his side of the table. On the other side sat the Blue Lions, with Byleth sitting at the head.

“So, now that we have all hopefully calm down…” Claude looked around the room, noticing tension still existed, but continued anyway. “We need to discuss our next course of action-“

“We take back the Kingdom.”

Felix was rubbing his fingers along his lips, looking at Claude straight in the eyes. He was serious, and he meant it.

“I am not saying I don’t agree,” Claude said to the surprise of everyone. “Taking back the Kingdom would not only improve our number of allies, but also improve the amount of land we have to work with. But tell me, Felix, why do you want to take back the Kingdom?”

“What kind of stupid question is that?” Felix crossed his arms. “Well aside from the fact that it’s my home, my old man has been fighting to protect it for years, I think it’s time we alleviate him… Also, considering you lied to the professor about us, and I know that’s what they would like to do, it’s the least you can do.”

Annette face palmed.

“See? That’s the answer I was expecting,” Claude sarcastically grinned. He then ran his fingers through his hair. “Regardless of reasons, taking back the Kingdom would only prove beneficial for us. The Kingdom has been under control of the Empire for too long, I say it’s about time we free it. Any objections?”

None.

“Good, glad it was this easy.” Claude leaned back. “Since we took the week intermission, I would like to get things moving as soon as possible…”

Byleth didn’t really listen to the rest of the plan. They knew what they had to do and how they were going to do it. Cornelia had framed Dimitri for murdering his uncle. If it were not for her, Dimitri might be here right now.

And Byleth was going to kill her for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I really want to make sure that every Blue Lion member has their moment. Ironically the ones that have received the most attention so far have been recruited members. But each Blue Lion (and Golden Deer) will have a moment to shine, so don’t worry!


	8. Liberation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I now have a plus one Thrasir and have to completely change my anima defense team as a result but still no Dimitri :(

“Teach, can we talk?”

Byleth was walking with Felix when Claude caught their attention. After three weeks of planning, they were finally nearing closer to Fhirdiad, and should be arriving there in a few more hours. The closer they got, the more uneasy Byleth became. They were itching to make that Cornelia pay for what she did. And Claude approaching them just before arriving did not make the uneasiness any better.

Despite Felix’s daring stares telling them not to, Byleth agreed. “Sure.”

They could hear Felix practically growl when they spoke. Thankfully, he didn’t try to stop them further, and instead went and found Sylvain further up the group. 

“What do you wish to speak of, Claude?”

“You know exactly what I want to talk about,” Claude almost seemed frustrated in his response. “Teach… I hate having this strain between us.”

Byleth was… astonished to say the least. Claude never seemed like the type to be the first to break after an argument, but it seemed he actually was going to be the first to apologize. 

“I can’t say that I am a fan of it either.” Byleth admitted.

“I’m glad you feel the same,” Claude rubbed the back of his head. “I understand that this isn’t something easy to put behind us, but I am hoping that over time we can move on from this.”

No apology yet. Perhaps it was the inner teacher within them, but Byleth wasn’t about to let him get away without saying it. 

“I hope you understand why I was so upset with you then,” Byleth pressured. 

“Well I hope you understand where I was coming from.” Claude retorted.

“Maybe I do.” Byleth wasn’t going to lie. “But for you to go on and on about trust and then betray the confidence I give you for as long as you did? Even for a schemer, lying to me about my students was wrong.”

Claude sighed. “Maybe I did go too far, and for that I am sorry.” There was the apology Byleth was looking for. “But you must understand, while you were sleeping this whole time, I have been fighting a war, we all have. I know what happened to you was out of your control, but it doesn’t change the actuality that I have seen far too much destruction and crusade while you were gone.”

For that, Byleth understood. 

“I… I want to create a new dawn for Fodlan, one where we can reach out our hands to one another, and have the other reach back. One without war or bloodshed. But I can’t do that when we are all forced to killing each other.” Claude proceeded. 

“That is a bold dream.” Byleth thought Claude was almost childish in his wish. 

“Maybe it is,” he replied. “But I hope that we create a future like that. One where we can learn to trust one another.”

Claude gave a snarky grin to Byleth, who rolled their eyes, but chuckled in response. “Then maybe learn to keep that trust in return.”

“I’ll work on it if you do, Byleth.”

Hearing their name come from his lips without hate or anger behind it sounded satisfying. “I’ll hold you to it then.”

***  
As they grew closer and closer to Fhirdiad, Byleth only grew more uneasy. But they were pleased to see the moral among the army was only building stronger.

Earlier that day, a troop that they sent out to look at the status of Fhirdiad had returned. According to him, Rodrigue had begun preparing his own army, ready to fight with the Alliance and Rebellion to take back the Kingdom. Following their lead, even the common people of Fhirdiad had begun rebel against Cornelia. The witch, determined to stop this rebellion once and for all, was attempting to prevent the army from getting to the Capital all together.

Hearing of Cornelia’s desperation was the boost of confidence everyone needed. The army was bustling with the very idea that they could take back the Kingdom after years of it being under control of the Empire. It seemed they had finally backed Cornelia into a corner. 

Even through their restless nerves, Byleth began to smile at the thought of liberating Fhirdiad. Annette even rallied up some of the troops to sing war songs, boosting the moral even more than it already was.

But Byleth’s smile quickly faded. They had a mission they needed to accomplish. Cornelia was a high ranking official, trusted by the Empire. If anyone under Edelgard’s command knew where Dimitri was, she would. Byleth was going to force her to tell them where he was, and once she had, Byleth was going to kill her.

At last, Fhirdiad was finally on the horizon, with Cornelia’s army preventing entry. 

“Prepare yourselves, everyone.” Claude was flying on Minerva now, ahead of the army. “This is going to be our biggest battle yet, and it’s one we cannot afford to fail. So, give this fight everything you’ve got!”

The army roared in response. It seemed that even with the battle looming ever closer, they were not about to let their guard down. Rodriuge’s army was no were to be seen yet. If they didn’t arrive soon, Byleth worried about the potential causalities that could be avoided.

But it seems they didn’t have time to wait. Cornelia’s army began marching towards them on the horizon. The battle had already begun. 

Byleth wasn’t normally one to speak before battles. Their father had always rallied the mercenaries, Dimitri did the same for the Blue Lions, and up to this point, Claude had been doing so for the Alliance and Rebellion. But Byleth had to let the fact be known.

“When we make it to the capital, stay clear of Cornelia. I shall be the one to slay her once I get the information I need.” 

Part of Byleth felt they sounded a little too much like Dimitri in that moment. But the other part of them didn’t care, they were not going to let information on where Dimitri could be slip away again.

And just like that the battle began.

The Alliance and Rebellion was quick to make contact with Cornelia’s troops. The sound of metal and yelling was all that could fil Byleth’s ears. But Byleth relished in those sounds, it was the sound of the liberation of the homeland of their students. 

Byleth didn’t waste any time letting the whip of the Sword of the Creator fly, cutting through a number of enemy knights. The bright flash of the Crest of Flame’s activation filled the battle field more times than they could count. Whatever it took to get to the capital quicker, Byleth was going to do it. 

They were thankful to see that their students had the same sentiment. Everywhere they turned, Byleth saw their students, Blue Lions and Golden Deer alike, pushing through Cornelia’s army. This was their first time fighting alongside the Blue Lions in five years, and Byleth was pleased to see they had only grown from their academy days. Felix appeared to have taken up bows quite well since then, swapping between his bow and sword flawlessly. Ashe’s range only got longer, being able to snipe down enemies that Byleth could barely see on the battlefield. Ingrid’s speed on her Pegasus rivaled that of even Seteth now, hitting grounded enemies from the air before they knew what even hit them. 

The Golden Deer students were no pushovers either. Despite her constant reluctance to fight, Byleth lost count of how many enemies died at the hand of Hilda and her axe. Byleth didn’t notice before how incredible Lorenz was at magic, as he consistently fired off spells to keep his opponents at bay before he hit them with his lance. Raphael was able to send his enemies flying through the air with how hard he hit them, and was able to take hits from them just as easily.

That being said, Byleth had to use their Divine Pulse several times during the fight. At one-point Sylvain took a hit for Mercedes, sending him flying off his horse directly into an enemy’s line of fire. Ignatz found himself cornered by a fortress knight he could do no damage to, the axe of the enemy making his death painless (or at least Byleth hoped). Linhardt failed to notice an assassin coming up behind him, and he only noticed when a dagger pierced his back. By the time they got to the gates of Fhirdiad, Byleth counted that they used five of their eleven Divine Pulse uses. 

But Byleth didn’t let that phase them. Stepping into the streets of Fhirdiad was enough to give them the urge to keep fighting. 

When they first arrived, they did their best to search for Cornelia through the masses. But they didn’t get the best chance to due to the Titanus monster’s flooding the streets. Wasting no time, and with back up from comrades such as Gilbert, Claude and Flayn, they began their assault on the creatures. 

However, these monsters appeared stronger than Byleth initially expected. The monsters were incredibly defensive, and were able to swing their swords to create shockwaves that could hit them from a distance. In their struggle to defeat them, Byleth almost failed to notice one of them defeat Flayn, and if it were not for Seteth’s scream, they would have. Five Divine Pulses left.

By the time they destroyed one of the Titans, most of their students had arrived in Fhirdiad. This was taking too long, Byleth thought. At this rate they would never make it to Cornelia, which Byleth could not afford.

“Ingird!” Byleth yelled for her. Based on how well they were taking hits, Byleth could only assume these monsters were being boosted by magic. With Ingrid’s high resistance, she should be able to take down the mage doing this rather easily, the only problem was finding them.

When Byleth finally spotted her, listening for their command, they devised their plan. “These things have magic helping them, we need to take down the mage boosting them,” Byleth looked around. Pushing through these things would be hard, but there were enough back allies in Fhirdiad that the soldiers could slip through, hopefully finding a place to take cover or make it around the monsters. As much as they hated doing so, while fighting these things, they had to remain on the defensive. “Any other fliers, come with me to support her, as well as anyone else able to slip past these things. The rest of you, try your best to keep the Titans at bay, or try and focus on other enemies instead!”

It was a risky plan, but the Titans were proving to much of a threat, they had no choice. Managing to cut down one more Titan while trying to pass them, Byleth kept their eye on the skies, watching Claude and Seteth defeat enemies from the clouds. Looking behind them, Byleth saw Leonie and Marianne keep steady behind them. Hopefully they would be enough backup for now. 

Byleth was searching the streets, slicing through as many enemies as they could. They could hear the yelling of their troops losing their lives due to the titans. If they didn’t find the mage protecting these things soon, it could affect the outcome of the battle.

It was then when Byleth heard yelling, joyous yelling emerging from the lower streets of the Kingdom Capital. They tried not to let it phase them, using reason magic to fight through as many enemies as they could. “It’s Rodrigue’s army!” They heard Ingrid yell. “They have finally arrived!”

A breath of relief left Byleth’s lungs. Hopefully with the assistance of Rodrigue, they would be able to hold off the Titanus a little longer. For now, they had to find this mage. 

“Professor!” Ingird’s yell was music to their ears. Her joyful tone could only mean they found the mage.

Heading to the location they believed to hear her voice from, Byleth found her. The mage was being guarded by several fortress knights as well as an assassin, just their luck wielding a bow. Byleth had to take the assassin down right now, the bow could kill Ingrid in one shot. Charging at them, not even giving them a second to ready his bow, Byleth clashed with him. At the last second, he managed to pull out a dagger in an attempt to block the Sword of the Creator, but Byleth’s crest of flames was too much for the dagger to bear. The dagger snapped in two, with the sword slicing through the assassin’s chest. 

Byleth turned to Ingrid. She was trying to get past the fortress knights to the mage, using her lance to cut through their armor. Helping her out, Byleth used their magic to assist. Before they knew it, the knights were gone, and all that remained was the mage. The magic attacks they used didn’t even effect Ingrid and the Pegasus knight cut the mage down with one fell swipe. 

Almost instantly, Byleth could feel the rumbles of the Titanus falling. They had changed the outcome of this battle; they would almost surely win now. With them out of the picture, Byleth had to find Cornelia. 

Making sure Ingrid and the other fliers would be able to handle themselves for now, Byleth stormed through the streets of Fhirdiad. Finding Cornelia was their only priority now. From overhead, Byleth could see Claude following them, firing at other enemies as he did. Hopefully with Claude’s help, he would be all Byleth needed to end the witch’s life once and for all. 

Finally, they found her. She was hiding behind several Titanus, but even from far away Byleth could see her sneering grin. 

At the sight of her, Byleth nearly lost all control. They were angry. They had finally found the one that took Dimitri away from them, and she was going to pay for it.

Byleth didn’t even wait for Claude before they began to attack the Titanus before them. Thankfully the fight must have been nearly over because several students, including Annette, Mercedes, and Hilda. With their combined strength, they were easily able to defeat the now weakened Titanus. Byleth could practically feel Cornelia’s surprise in the air. 

“You.” Byleth didn’t dare speak her name. “You framed Dimitri and killed his uncle, right?”

Cornelia let out a nervous laugh. “The fault is all mine,” she admitted. “I assume you’re this dashing Professor I’ve heard so much about?”

Byleth growled. They didn’t really listen to what she was saying after she admitted that it was her who framed Dimitri. “Then prepare to meet your end.”

Byleth bolted towards her so quick the several magic attacks fired off at them failed to hit them. It didn’t faze Cornelia however, who skillfully dodged the attack from the Sword of the Creator. She fired off more magic spells at Byleth, this time connecting, but the teacher did not let that slow them down. They could handle a few magical burns, despite how powerful they might be.

Thankfully, Mercedes seemed to notice the magical attack and heal Byleth from a distance. It was helpful, but Byleth spent no time thinking about it and continued their assault on Cornelia. The witch grinned with every hit she avoided, making Byleth fill with fury. Trying not to let their anger give them a disadvantage, Byleth took a moment to stop attacking at close range. Instead, they began trying to attack Cornelia from afar, attempting to compose their anger as they swung their whip back and forth. From above them, Byleth saw Claude. He nodded at them, and Byleth knew he had a plan.

Activating the crest of flames, Byleth began to rapidly use their whip now, not giving Cornelia a chance to draw breath. Byleth didn’t stop until they heard the screeching of Minerva. For a brief moment, Cornelia stood still, catching her breath as she did so.

Claude’s arrow piercing through her arm was the only thing that made her move. Once her screams filled the air, Byleth charged at her again, using the Sword of the Creator to slice open her legs. The witch fell to the ground, unmovable, cornered, and at Byleth’s mercy.

Just when Cornelia was about to try and get back up, Byleth’s sword was at her neck. “You aren’t going anywhere until I get answers,” Byleth warned her.

Cornelia only laughed in response. “So, demanding, how dare you threaten the holder of Fhirdiad’s throne.”

“It’s Dimitri’s throne!” Byleth let the sword dig into her neck slightly. They only stopped digging when they felt Claude’s hand on their shoulder.

“If you wish for your life, tell us what’s become of Dimitri.” Claude forewarned. “You framed him for killing his uncle, correct?”

“Too true.” She said simply. “And if it weren’t for his Duscur pet, we would have successfully executed him. Thankfully my soldier’s took care of that dog as punishment for leading Dimitri to his freedom.”

Byleth cut her in half.

Byleth didn’t care if they were wasting a Divine Pulse while doing so. Cornelia had killed Dedue. Sweet, protective Dedue. The true definition of a gentle giant. Byleth recalled seeing him tending to the garden, asking them if they needed assistance cooking, anything he could help with, Dedue was there. And this witch had killed him.

By the time they turned back time to stop, Byleth still wished to kill her again, and if it were not for Claude’s hand on their shoulder, they would have. 

Byleth didn’t show remorse for Dedue’s death. They would not give Cornelia the satisfaction. 

“It took a few years, but we finally found out where the prince hid,” Cornelia continued. She acted as though her death never happened, and as far as she knew, it never did. “He gave quite a fight; we sent too many Empire soldiers to him at that church. All of them lost their lives.”

So, Gilbert was right. Dimitri was at Garreg Mach.

“But after years of trying, and with the help of some of our strongest allies, we finally caught him.”

That was all Byleth needed to hear. So, they had him. The Empire captured him. “Where is he.” It was a demand to know, not a question.

“Not too far from here, actually.” Cornelia gave the answer easily. Too easily. And Claude caught notice of this. “Just inside the castle, believe it or not. Imagine being a prisoner in your own home.”

Byleth had the answers they needed. Dimitri was here. He was here. He was practically within their grasp he was so close. 

Byleth was going to cut her down right there and now, but Cornelia kept talking. “I can only imagine what our little friends have been doing to him. He would call out for you, you know. Begging, pleading for you as they made his very existence miserable. We may have only had him for a few months now, but it must have felt like an eternity for him.”

Byleth could not see through the red that filled their eyes. They were going to kill her. How dare she. How dare they hurt Dimitri. Byleth could hardly think straight at the thought.

Byleth raised the Sword of the Creator and cut through her.

At least, that is what Byleth believed, at first.

The sword cut through nothing, nothing but air. Cornelia had vanished instantly. Byleth looked around desperately. 

“Must you tempt your prey, Cornelia?”

Byleth turned around. Standing on top of a building, was Cornelia and another figure, the man who saved her. Byleth would never forget that man. After all, the last time they saw him was the day their father died.

“Sorry, it’s just too much fun.” Cornelia replied to him. She was applying healing magic to her legs as she stood, wincing from the pain. “But would it have killed you to show up a little earlier, Thales?”

“My apologies,” Thales replied.

“You!” Byleth yelled as they jumped towards them, not even using the whip of their sword. They would drive the Sword of the Creator through them. They would kill them both.

But their sword only hit the ground. The two were gone in an instant.

Byleth should have been angry. They should have screamed in frustration at letting them get away. Byleth went into this battle promising to kill Cornelia. And they had failed. And to make matters worse, Thales, the man that assisted in killing their father, got away too.

But Byleth couldn’t worry about that now.

Because Dimitri was waiting for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens :3
> 
> Cornelia is actually such a bitch. F her. But god is she fun to right. She is just so evil it opens up a realm of possibilities. 
> 
> I do want to briefly mention something that was kinda alluded to last chapter. Pretty much every optional recruitable ally for the Blue Lion’s path, including Manuela, Hanneman, Catherine, Shamir, Alois, and Cyril, are here. However, they are definitely taking a back seat for most of this story. They may get a name mention every now and then, but they won’t be getting the focus the Blue Lions and Golden Deer students will receive. If you like them, sorry! But they are mostly just background players here.
> 
> We are getting into the real shit next chapter. Hold onto your pants because oh boy :)


	9. Him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dimitri please come home… I wanted to use you for the voting gauntlet :(

Byleth stormed into the Fhirdiad castle.

They didn’t even bother to wait for the Blue Lions to catch up with them. After Cornelia and Thales got away, they were quick to inform everyone of what happened and where Dimitri was.

And sorrowfully… They informed them of Dedue. Byleth hated telling them right after their victory liberating the Kingdom, but they had to know. They all… looked devastated, to say the least. Byleth recalled that they hadn’t seen Ashe so upset since they day they were forced to take Lonato down.

But each of them knew they had to keep moving. Dimitri was here in Fhirdiad. Based on what Cornelia had said he was in trouble. They had to get to him as fast as possible.

“Byleth, wait.”

Despite knowing that he probably had a good reason to stop them, Byleth would be lying if they said they weren’t irritated by Claude stopping them. The only thing on their mind at that moment was Dimitri, and until he was safe in Byleth’s arms, they would continue to feel that way.

“What is it, Claude?” It was hard to hide the irritation in their voice.

“I know you just want to find him,” Claude began. “But… you have to be prepared for what you may find.”

Byleth shut their eyes at the thought. Cornelia said that they were making Dimitri’s life miserable. And considering that Dimitri wasn’t exactly in a good mental health state even back during the academy days, Byleth feared to even think how he would be now.

But… they had to hold out hope. The Dimitri Byleth grew so close to would believe in them. They had to believe and hope that he would be alright.

Needless to say, however, Claude was keeping reality in check. “Teach, Cornelia told us where he was too easily. Why would she willingly tell us where he was, even if it meant losing her life? Dimitri is heir to the throne of the Kingdom, him coming back in the picture would be an instant threat to the Empire.”

To be honest Byleth didn’t even think about this. Cornelia may have told them were Dimitri was without too much argument, but considering she finally told them where Dimitri was, they really didn’t care. All that mattered after that was finding him. “So why do you think she told us then?”

“I… I don’t know,” Claude admitted. “It’s almost to peculiar for me to even work my head around. But… please Byleth… Just prepare yourself for what state he might be in.”

Byleth kept this in mind despite how hard it was to. 

Claude had eventually convinced Byleth to hold on just a bit longer for more backup. When Byleth first told the students that Dimitri was in the cells of Fhirdiad, Ingrid had mentioned that it was quite a trip from the first floor of the castle to there. The cells were deep underground below the castle, so getting there would take longer than a short stroll. There was a lot of opportunities for more of Cornelia’s forces to be hiding amongst the shadows, expecting Byleth and company to arrive. They had to be prepared for that.

Once several more students arrived, the group finally decided to move out. The majority of the forces were still searching the streets of Fhirdiad, looking for straggler enemies and surviving citizens. But the group that had formed in the castle, including Felix, Sylvain, Ingrid, Marianne, Ignatz, Raphael and Lysithea would have to be enough.

Felix, Sylvain and Ingrid had mostly joined the group due to their knowledge of the castle’s layout, and were easily able to lead them to the long staircase to the prison cells. With every step the air became more humid, showing just how unkept the cells were. And as they grew closer and closer to the bottom of the stairs, Byleth struggled to gain composure.

When they finally got to the basement, there was a long hallway before they could enter where the prisoners were held. For a moment, it looked like they would be able to reach it without any enemies.

But the moment they took another step, the enemies they feared would arrive came bursting out of the door leading to the cells. A large number of mages, as well as a few melee enemies, immediately tried to prevent entry.

The thin structure of the hallway made battling a blessing and a curse. It allowed slaying the enemies easy, but it did not give much room for fighting offensively. It caused the fighting to be right on top of one another, which was aggravating none the less.

Just when the group thought they had slayed all of the enemies, they heard loud steps coming from the stairs they just went down. The enemies were trying to surround them from both sides.

“Professor, go!” Ingrid insisted. “We can handle these guys, just take some back up with you in case there’s any more in there!”

Byleth nodded and quickly looked to the allies closest to them. Felix, Sylvain, Lysithea, and Claude all nodded to them, agreeing to go with them. The rest of the group should be able to handle the coming enemies, and Byleth could only assume more reinforcements of theirs were arriving to the castle looking to assist. Hopefully the enemy would be surrounded on both sides now.

Kicking the door leading to the cells open, Byleth prepared themselves for what was contained in the cells.

The smell of filth filled their nose, almost enough to make them vomit. There were several cells, about six on each side, with one looming towards the end. Each cell was reinforced with a large metal door, preventing them from seeing what was inside unless they were up close to look through the small bared window.

At the end of the hall, stood one lone mage, protecting the cell at the end. He seemed startled by their sudden entry, and tried to fire off a magic spell.

“No you don’t!” Lysithea fired off a spell before him, sending him into the wall. The hit knocked the wind out of him before Lysithea went and grabbed onto him.

Byleth could see Lysithea tremble through her bravery. The mage wore a bird’s mask, similar to the ones the mages that hurt her had worn. But despite her visable fear, Lysithea remained strong.

The young mage only had to stare at her enemy to get him to talk. “Who you’re looking for is in here!” He claimed defensively, pointing to the door he was standing guard of.

The door to the cell was sealed by a powerful magic, but surprisingly the captured mage was quick to open it, likely fearing for his life. Lysithea held a firm grip on the man, all the while not looking near the cell. Byleth felt terrible dragging her with them here; she was probably traumatized by it all.

Byleth was the first to step into the cell.

They were greeted by a figure, sitting against the wall.

Byleth could hear his breathing from across the cell, the echo harsh against the humid walls. He clearly had some kind of infection in the lungs, Byleth could tell from just the sound. He had grown since the last time Byleth had saw them, though they could tell from the outline of the shadowed figure that he was too thin for someone of his size. It was so dark in the cell the light from the now open door hardly illuminated him, so Byleth could not see how pale he had become, what new scars flooded his body now, the dried blood seeping through his tattered clothes.

But Byleth knew that it was him.

Byleth dropped the Sword of the Creator, letting it clink against the ground as they walked closer to him. Neither Claude nor Felix reached down to pick it back up, they only watched as Byleth inched closer to the figure. Byleth had heard Sylvain make a concerned noise from behind them, but they did not care. All that mattered to them in that moment was the weak figure leaning against the wall.

It had seemed like an eternity when Byleth had finally made it to him, standing in front of him to survey what condition he was in. They had only noticed close up that he was chained to the wall by his wrists and neck. They still could not see him clearly, but judging by the harsh breathing and smell of humidity and blood coming off him, he was not treated kindly by Cornelia’s forces.

Byleth held back their tears, wanting to be strong for him. “Dimitri…”

The chains moved slightly and a weakened groan escaped his mouth. In this darkness, Byleth had to rely on their other senses rather than their eyesight, but they wanted to believe that Dimitri was looking at them.

“Teach.”

Byleth did not turn to face Claude, the chains hitting against the ground was all they could focus on.

“Professor-“

There was a flash of light.

Byleth couldn’t breathe. They felt a sharp pain on the entirety of their left side, a burning sensation unlike anything they have ever felt. For the first time in their life, there was a pulsing, an aching, clawing pulsing in their heart, crying out for help.

Dimitri had attacked Byleth. Byleth’s Dimitri, their precious Dimitri, had hit them so hard in the side that they were sent flying across the cell. They hit the wall so hard pieces of the brick began to crumble off, falling to the ground with them.

As Byleth laid there, trying to claw out the intense pulsing that erupted from their heart, all they could think about was Dimitri. Their poor Dimitri. What had they done to him? What had they done to their precious Dimitri that would make him attack Byleth? The one who Dimitri wished to be together forever with?

Through their blurry vision, Byleth saw an orange light coming from the door. They could make out the form of Lysithea, keeping the mage prisoner in her hands still, as she looked to the form of Dimitri. He was trashing, pulling his chains off of the wall as he ran to attack. Byleth knew he must have been running on pure adrenaline, because even through their blurry vision they could make out his weak form, begging for mercy.

Dimitri lunged towards Lysithea, but Sylvain would not let that happen. Byleth couldn’t hear what he was saying, losing their hearing temporarily, but they could tell he was trying to calm him down. Surely Sylvain too did not believe Dimitri would do this. But Dimitri ran at him, as if not even recognizing one of his closest friends, ready to attack.

There was another flash, one that blinded Byleth’s weak vision, and when it returned, Sylvain was on the ground, just nearby them. The armor on his arm was deformed in a way Byleth didn’t even know was possible, and Sylvain gripped it, biting down on his lip to prevent himself from screaming. Lysithea was yelling instead, wanting to help, but still dedicated to keeping the mage prisoner.

Flash. Byleth saw Claude fly into the wall across the room. Pieces of the bow he used as a shield flew across the room. He grunted loudly as he landed, calling out for Felix.

As Felix dodged and dodged Dimitri’s constant assault, more flashes of light illuminated the room. Felix was calling out for Dimitri, not the boar, as he continued to avoid the shell of his friend. At one point, Felix had ended up behind Dimitri, and rose his sword high in the air…

Dimitri fell to the ground, knocked unconscious by the hilt of Felix’s sword. Before Felix could even take in what just happened, he went to the mage, still being held by Lysithea…

Truthfully, Byleth didn’t know what happened after that. Through their blurred vision, they saw the white hair of Lysithea bend down to them…

And for a moment, just a brief moment, everything was calm. Byleth felt no pain, the pulsing in their heart had stopped, their vision and hearing returned.

“Please, don’t worry about me,” they could hear Sylvain’s pained voice say. “Just… focus on them.”

“What the hell did you do to him?” They heard Felix yell, making their ears ring.

Mechanical laughter followed.

Byleth was laying down, with Claude and Lysithea over them. Lysithea was trying to heal them, by the looks of it, but Byleth remained focused on Felix.

Byleth only then noticed the blood pool forming on the floor nearby. In a fit of rage, Felix had cut the mage’s arm off.

“We did him a favor!” The mage replied through the mechanical laughter. “He sought power; we simply gave it to him. We have done many experiments here, but he is our greatest success!”

Experiment?

Byleth could no longer breathe again. The excruciating pulsing in their heart had returned. Dimitri. _What had they done to Dimitri_.

Whatever they had done to them, Claude and Lysithea clearly did not want Byleth to see, because they were obscuring their vision. Their arm was broken, Byleth knew, shattered by their student, but despite that, Byleth tried to move them.

“Professor please…” Lysithea begged. “Your terribly injured… Just hold on.”

“D-Dimitri.” Byleth choked through sobs. They were crying now, particularly because of the pain, but also because of the fear they felt for Dimitri.

Lysithea was crying now too, it seemed. Byleth could tell she wanted to remain in her place. But eventually moved.

Byleth looked to the unconscious form of Dimitri. They could fell themselves slipping into unconsciousness now too. But they had to remain awake for just a little longer.

With the fire spell Lysithea lit in the room, Byleth could now see Dimitri through the darkness, but their nearing unconscious state still made it difficult. Dimitri didn’t even really look like Dimitri anymore. Even though he had clearly grown since last seeing him, Byleth noticed how thin and unhealthy he seemed. He breathed shallowly; the sounds didn’t even sound human.

But Byleth could barely focus on that.

Because his pure white hair captured all of their attention.

Byleth was sobbing now. _No no no no no._

Not Dimitri.

Please… not Dmitri.

The horrific pulsing in their heart returned before Byleth blacked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)


	10. Agony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU, PEONY, FOR PITY BREAKING ME TWICE NOW. THANK YOU FOR PREVENTING ME FROM GETTING DIMITRI AGAIN I REALLY APPREICATE IT.

Byleth awoke with a gasp.

As their dry mouth attempted to cough, Byleth slowly opened their equally as dry eyes. As their vision adjusted to the brightness of the room, they noticed that they were in Manuela’s infirmary. It reminded them far too much of when they first woke up after their five-year slumber.

Attempting to move themselves, Byleth felt a severe aching sting across the whole left side of their body, with most of the pain coming from their chest. Glancing down, they saw that their entire chest was wrapped in thick bandages, appearing to have just been recently changed. Their left arm was in a cast, with even their fingers unmovable. Their right arm didn’t look very good either, but it didn’t seem to be broken, although it was covered in bruises that had yet to heal. 

Every breath they took hurt. The pulsing that once made them feel pain unlike any other in their heart was once again ceased to beat. But each rise and fall of their chest caused pain to erupt from the area. Just what kind of harm did Dimitri cause?

Dimitri. Byleth’s eyes began to water, partially from the pain, but also from the thought of their beloved student. Even in Dimitri’s worst mental state, he would not harm them intentionally, Byleth knew that. Just what had the Empire done to him that caused him to lash out on his own, treasured professor?

“Good morning Professor.”

Byleth glanced over at the voice. In their dazed state, Byleth failed to notice that Manuela was in the room. The former teacher did her best to smile at Byleth, despite it probably being difficult to do so. 

“M-Manuela…” Byleth coughed. For a moment they swore they tasted iron in their mouth. The arm that wasn’t broken trembled as it instinctively went to cover their mouth.

“Don’t strain yourself,” Manuela urged. “Do you remember what happened?”

Byleth nodded.

“Good, at least your head is still there.” Manuela wiped the sweat off Byleth’s forehead.

“Dimitri.” Byleth couldn’t bare not knowing about him anymore. “What happened to Dimitri?”

Manuela have a half grin, although no happiness existed within it. She knew the question was coming. “He’s… nearing stable at least. We got him out of Fhirdiad and brought him here. It seems not a soul in the Kingdom knows he still lives… Claude seems to wish to keep it that way.”

“So… He’s here?” Byleth tried to push themselves up. They had to see him, but the pain in their chest refused.

“Easy!” Manuela scolded. “You are in no state to go see him. Even if you were, you wouldn’t be able to talk to him.”

Byleth made eye contact with her before Manuela continued. “I… I am going to be honest with you. He’s not in good shape. At all. He has been unconscious since Fhirdiad.”

Byleth remembered. They remember seeing Felix hit Dimitri with the hilt of his sword before drifting off into unconsciousness themselves. 

“Whatever that dastard Empire did to him…” Manuela drifted off. “Never mind, there is no need to cause you more unnecessary stress. It isn’t good for your body.”

“What did he do?” Byleth hated making it sound like they blamed Dimitri for this. They didn’t for one second.

“Aside from the damage to you, he caused several minor injuries to Claude and Felix. Sylvain… had his arm damaged severely. But he should make a full recovery.” Manuela turned to the counter on the other side of the room. She appeared to be mixing an elixir of some sort, likely for Byleth. “Unfortunately, you took the brunt of the damage. Your arm is broken, as I am sure you can tell. Your hip is fractured, so I forbid walking for at least a few more days. Several of your ribs are broken, one of them punctured your lung, but Lysithea managed to heal that quickly as soon as it happened. You may still feel pain though.”

It was a lot to process, but Byleth was happy at least her students were alright. 

“You’ve been out for a week,” Manuela added. “I apologize that we haven’t been able to do much healing, but we have been exhausting our magic else ware.”

Byleth was about to ask what that meant, but a cough left their lips instead. On command, Manuela walked over to them, pouring the elixir into their mouth. “This may make you drowsy, but it should numb the pain.”

May make them drowsy? Byleth began to feel sleepy right away. “Sorry,” Manuela took notice of this. “I am sure you still have many questions, but it will have to wait. For now, just focus on getting rest.”

Byleth drifted off to sleep after that.

***  
Byleth hated staying in bed for so long.

Over the next week, Byleth began to make small steps towards their recovery. Although no one would tell them why there wasn’t much white magic healing going on, there was some minor healing sessions that helped Byleth. Their hip was almost healed now, and they had begun walking short distances, but they still needed help walking longer distances than through the hall. 

Nearly every single one of their students, Golden Deer and Blue Lions alike, came to visit them. Notable absences included Claude, although Byleth couldn’t blame him; he just received the entirety of the Kingdom to control now. Mercedes and Annette came to visit as well as help heal them, but other mages such as Marianne, Linhardt and Lysithea were noticeably absent. 

It was all small talk when the students would come to visit, and the majority of them avoided the topic of Dimitri, but Byleth was happy to see them none the less.

When Felix, Ingrid and Sylvain came to visit, it was much more somber. Byleth swore that Manuela must have lied to them when she said Sylvain was recovering smoothly, because his arm looked terrible. The cast he wore was so thick and his arm was in such an unnatural position Byleth wondered how he could talk without wincing from pain. 

“Really, it’s no big deal, Professor!” Sylvain lied at one point. 

Byleth hated seeing their students like this.

***

Much to Byleth’s surprise, Claude came to visit them less than a week later. He looked defeated to say the least, but did his best to smile at them. He tried to make small talk with Byleth, but the conversations always lead back to what happened. “Teach- I mean, Byleth,” he said at one point. “Hanneman and Linhardt… They’ve been working hard to figure out what those dastards did to Dimitri. Hanneman just informed me this morning that… they think they know what happened.” 

Byleth, who had been looking down at their hands the entire conversation, shot their head right at Claude. “But I told him I wouldn’t want to know without you finding out as well. No more secrets, right?”

It was after that when Claude helped Byleth from their bed across the hall to Hanneman’s office. Claude had to help them a little, but they managed to get over there on their own for the most part. 

Hanneman and Linhardt greeted them when they arrived, offering the two of them a chair. They didn’t speak for a while. “So,” Hanneman started. “Ever since he has arrived here, we have been doing extensive research into Dimitri, finding out what had been done to him.”

Hanneman began to play with a vial on his desk. “We managed to get a blood sample from the Prince and have been working ever since.”

“I should add,” Linhardt cut in. “Lysithea helped a lot. Her personal history helped give a better idea of what was done. But… we think we finally have an answer.”

Byleth nodded in response, but truly they just wanted to have answers. Part of them wanted to tell them to just get to the point, but they didn’t want to be rude.

Thankfully, Hanneman gave them their answer. “It seems that our theory that the Empire has Lady Rhea is all but confirmed now, because he has a minor crest of Serios. Odds are he obtained this crest due to what they are doing to her.” Byleth barely had time to process this before Hanneman continued. “But truthfully, that is the least of our worries.”

Claude looked just as confused as Byleth. “What do you mean?”

“As I am sure you are aware,” Linhardt began. “Dimitri possessed a minor crest of Blaiddyd. But this isn’t the case anymore. We don’t know how they did it, and Lysithea seems to have never heard of something like this occurring as well, but he now possesses a major crest of Blaiddyd.”

Byleth parted their lips. “How is that even possible?” They questioned out loud.

“We… we don’t know.” Linhardt responded. “What’s more is that this major crest of Blaiddyd activates much more often than we expected. I wouldn’t be surprised if they found a way to make it activate more than often. The strength he has is… extraordinary, from what we have seen. If these dastards hadn’t don’t such horrible things to him, it would be a scientific marvel.”

Byleth bit their lip. Dimitri already had remarkable strength before any of this happened. The fact that he was made even stronger? Byleth was shocked they were still alive from when he attacked them. If Dimitri wasn’t as weak as he was in that cell, he probably would have.

Next to them, Claude groaned. When Byleth looked to him, he was rubbing his eyes. “I feared this would be the case.”

“What do you mean, Claude?” Byleth didn’t know if they could process more information.

“Byleth…” He hesitated. “There is no way they would willingly give Dimitri back to us, we knew that from the start. I think I’ve figured out why they were so willing.”

Byleth closed their eyes. Deep down, they too knew the answer.

“Byleth… I think they gave us to him because they thought Dimitri would kill you.”

***  
After a few more days, Byleth was finally well enough to walk on their own without help. Their arm was still in a cast, and the pain in their chest didn’t cease, but it was progress.

Practically the moment they could move around better, Byleth was begging the others to let them see Dimitri. They begged and begged, but everyone insisted that Byleth should wait a little longer. 

Out of all people, Byleth didn’t expect Felix to be the one to break. “You deserve to see.” He claimed.

Felix lead Byleth to the basement corridors of Garreg Mach. The monistary never really used the cells, so Byleth didn’t even recognize where they were going until Felix brought it up. “Before you protest to us keeping him in the prison cells, we didn’t have a choice.”

Before they even entered the cells, Byleth heard the commotion occurring from the other side. 

When they walked through the metal door, Byleth gaped at what they saw.

Behind the metal bars of the cell, several healers were surrounding the unconscious Dimitri. Four of them, which included Lysithea and Annette, weren’t even healing him. They appeared to be using their magic to restrain Dimitri, since even in his unconscious state his crest was activating. The four mages struggled to hold him down as Mercedes, Marianne, and Manuela worked on healing him. 

Stepping closer to the bars, Byleth could only hold their hand up to their mouth to prevent the gasp from escaping it. 

Laying on a metal table in the center of them was Dimitri. He mumbled in his sleep, likely caused by the nightmare filled fever he was suffering from. The young prince had changed so much since Byleth last saw him, but he looked horrific. His longer hair was still the stark white color that Byleth prayed was just a bad dream. New scars lined his body, each having healed at different times. Most of them only looked freshly made; those Empire dastards had done the majority of the damage to him in the several months he was their captive. The largest scar was one was a large incision that went from his collarbone to his bellybutton, made into the shape of a cross. There were also terrible scars running along his wrists, ankles and neck, made from the chains that held him in that humid cell. 

But none of these scars horrified Byleth more than what happened to his eye. In the place where his right eye should be was an empty hole, lined with countless scars. The Empire… they must have just done that to him for their own sick entertainment. The amount of freshly healed scars covering his eye socket was enough to make Byleth vomit. Dimitri’s eye, his beautiful blue pools, was ripped out by those monsters.

All Byleth could do was weep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love angst/whump so much :)
> 
> A lot of perspective changes in this chapter, so sorry if that was distracting. But it had to happen!
> 
> More revelations to come! Shit is really going to start hitting the fan soon, including something I don’t think anyone will expect, so look forward to it!


	11. Confidence from Discovery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone wants to show me their beautiful Dimitris that I still don’t have, my friend code in Fire Emblem Heroes is 0111093727 :(

Byleth spilled tea on their legs.

It had been about a week since Byleth had last seen Dimitri. Over that week, Byleth had made a lot of progress healing. They were now able to walk perfectly normal, and their arm had been taken out of its cast. Aside from the pain in their chest, Byleth felt almost back to normal.

Annette had stopped to say hi to Byleth one day after coming back from healing Dimitri. She looked completely exhausted, so Byleth suggested they have tea. Annette happily accepted, and suggested that they go have the tea in the training grounds. Sylvain’s arm was healing now, and Felix and Ingrid were helping him get used to using his lance again. Annette wished to go cheer him on, and Byleth gladly went as well.

When they got there, Felix, Sylvain and Ingrid were in the center of the training grounds already practicing. Ashe was also there, sitting on the sidelines, also wishing to see Sylvain getting back into the swing of things. Annette and Byleth sat down next to him, watching Sylvain wielding his training lance against Felix and Ingrid.

Watching Sylvain was… difficult. The likelihood of Sylvain gaining full use of his arm back again was very slim, and his training was proof of that. His hand struggled to grip onto the training lance, and his arm consistently didn’t do what he wished it to. Ingrid noticed about halfway through the training and stepped aside.

“It’s okay, Sylvain.” She comforted him. “You’ll be back to normal in no time.”

Sylvain smiled at her, but Byleth knew that he was struggling to do so. He was growing visibly frustrated as he continued to spar with Felix, who also noticed the red head’s difficulty. 

That was when Byleth spilled their tea.

Their tea cup fell to the floor, shattering as Byleth gripped the top of their legs. The boiling water had splashed onto the top of their thigh and began to drip down Byleth’s leg. They swore, trying to hide their pain.

They were embarrassed. They had only just begun to recover and here they were, hurting themselves. Byleth thought themselves an idiot in that moment, they shouldn’t have used their newly healed arm to lift their tea cup. The fingers failed to grip around the handle as tight as they needed, and they proceeded to drop the cup.

“Professor!” They heard Ashe say, but they didn’t look up.

“It’s okay,” they heard Annette say. “I… I can heal it.”

But Byleth wasn’t listening to them. Their legs hurt and they were ashamed by their weakness. Part of them hated to use their power on something as trivial as this, but in that moment, Byleth didn’t care. Calling on the power Sothis granted to them, Byleth reached out, preventing this event from ever happening.

Except… that moment never came. The boiling tea continued to burn their skin, leaving burn marks on the top of their legs. Byleth closed their eyes again, trying to reach out for that power once more.

But nothing came.

Why wasn’t it working?

“Annette!”

Felix’s voice snapped Byleth back into reality. They looked at Annette, who looked like she was going to faint from exhaustion. The poor girl, she had used up all of her energy trying to heal Dimitri. Even using her magic for as something as simple as a burn completely drained her.

“I-I’m okay.” Annette claimed.

“Don’t be foolish,” Felix scolded her. He lifted her off of the ground, putting her arm around him. “You’re pushing yourself too much… I am taking you to your room.”

“Professor, are you alright?” Ingrid asked them. Byleth must have seemed out of it to her. 

“I’ll go look for another healer,” Ashe volunteered. “I think Abigail should be on her break. Don’t worry professor, those burns will be gone in no time.” 

But Byleth stopped worrying about the burns on their legs. They were confused; why didn’t it work? 

Why didn’t their Divine Pulse work?

***  
Later that evening, Byleth was in their room.

They were staring at an empty tea cup for a while now. It was from an old, spare set that they kept in their room. They hadn’t touched it since they were still teaching, and time was not kind to it. The once vibrant colors faded overtime, and it was covered in old dust that for the life of them, Byleth could not seem to get fully clean. 

Part of them didn’t want to even test it. They didn’t even want to know the answers they sought. But they had to work up the courage. They had to face it.

Taking their hand, Byleth wacked the tea cup, sending it flying onto the floor. The old thing didn’t even stand a chance; it shattered into dozens of pieces that flew across their room.

Byleth rubbed their now healed legs. Ashe was right and Abigail was on break; she was able to heal them swiftly. But Byleth swore they could still feel the burns.

Extending their hand, Byleth reached out to the tea cup, calling forth the power of their Divine Pulse to undo the cup’s fate. 

But it never came.

Byleth didn’t know how long they tried to use their Divine Pulse. All they knew is that was as more time passed, the more frustrated they became. Their hand trembled at their vexation, it growing tired from being extended for so long. Byleth felt sweat drip from their forehead at their attempt to concentrate.

But it didn’t matter how hard they tried. The Divine Pulse never came.

Finally giving up, Byleth placed their head on their hands, still trembling. Dimitri… Did Dimitri do this? In his poor, fearful state when he attacked Byleth… had he somehow caused more damage to Byleth than they initially realized?

Was the damage he had done to Byleth the reason they couldn’t use a Divine Pulse?

Byleth sat there in denial.  
***  
Byleth remained in that position until talking from outside their room snapped them out of it. 

“It cost me hours of my sleep schedule, but I think I’ve finally done it.” Lysithea’s voice was strained. “I request a good night’s rest so I have the best chance to successfully using the spell in the morning.”

“Request granted.” Claude’s voice replied. “Please take your time, he still sleeps for now, you don’t have to push yourself. I commend you for your hard work.”

Lysithea yawned. “It was nothing. If anyone was going to figure out the sealing spell, it would be me. I am the only one in the army capable of using dark magic, you know.”

“Still,” Claude’s footsteps were loud on the stone brick. “We only saw the spell for a split second before that mage dismissed it. The fact that you could figure it out-”

Lysithea yawned again. “Boy please,” Judith’s voice said. “The girl is exhausted. You can continue to praise her once she is well rested.”

Their voices were becoming faint, walking further from Byleth’s room. Curious, Byleth went to their door, opening it slightly.

Lysithea had already gone to bed before they opened the door, it seemed. Only Judith and Claude remained.

“You really think the spell will work?” Judith asked.

“I have to hope so,” Claude replied. “My mages’ energy is all being wasted because they are holding the man down. He only grows closer and closer to waking each day, sooner or later they won’t be able to hold him down anymore. If he is capable of waring them out in his sleep, I don’t want to think about the strength he will have once he awakes.”

Claude sighed, running his hand through his hair. “I can’t afford putting my mages’ lives at risk. If Lysithea can pull of this spell, we won’t have to worry about that anymore.”

Judith nodded. “I know you have a lot of worry about right now, but you shouldn’t keep Nader waiting much longer.”

Claude sighed. “I know. I’ll respond to him as soon as this Dimitri issue is cleared up. That will put my mind more at ease.”

“Boy, if you want this war to be over, I would respond to him soon.” Judith sighed now. “We will need Nader’s forces if we want to ensure our success over the Empire.”

“I know, I know.” Claude rubbed his eyes now. “But I can’t rush this. I have to try and clear out any other prejudice as much as I can beforehand. I know members of my own army hold grudges against Almyra. Not to mention members of the Blue Lions were affected by the Tragedy of Duscur. The prejudice is there.”

“I understand, but you can’t continue to hold it off.” Judith began to walk away. “I am off to bed for now. Please, just try to get back to Nader as soon as possible… Claude.”

And then she was gone.

Claude sighed as she left. He began to kick the dirt at the ground, overwhelmed.

“You can stop hiding now Teach.”

Byleth blinked. Had he known they were there the whole time?

Emerging from their room, Byleth walked to Claude. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to listen in.” They aplologized

Claude huffed before giving a halfhearted smile to them. “It’s alright.” He looked towards the sky, counting the stars. It was early in the morning, nearing dawn now. “If you’re not going to bed, care to join me? I was going to check up on Minerva.”

Byleth knew they wouldn’t be sleeping, so they followed.

As they approached the stables, Minerva was already waiting for Claude. The creature nearly purred upon seeing her rider, rubbing her head against Claude’s extended hand. 

It was silent for a few moments. “So how much did you hear?” Claude finally asked.

Byleth placed their hand on their chin. “I heard about Lysithea and this sealing spell. And then I heard something about someone named Nader?” 

“Thought so,” Claude continued to scratch the wyvern’s neck. 

“I don’t know who that is, if you were worried.” Byleth truthfully didn’t need to know. They started to feel bad for listening in on Claude and Judith’s conversation.

“Actually, you do,” Claude informed them. “Judith mentioned him before. He’s my retainer that Judith also instructed in protecting Daphnel territory. Though I believe she called him Nardel before.”

“Why the hiding of his name?” Byleth asked.

Claude raised an eyebrow at them before dismissing Minerva. “If anyone around here heard that, it wouldn’t go well. No one here can trust a man from Almyra.”

Claude said the word Almyra differently that when Byleth were listening in before. Truthfully, Byleth didn’t know much about the country other than what they heard others mention. Supposedly they were a war hungry nation that was constantly at odds with Fodlan. The way they spoke of it reminded Byleth of how people talked harshly of Duscur. Dimitri always grew angry at those people, and truthfully Byleth did too. Dedue is- was such a kind soul. For people to say such horrible things about him just based on where he was from made Byleth’s blood boil.

Byleth didn’t know anyone from Almyra, but they were sure this Nader was the same.

“Well clearly you can,” Byleth tried to smile at him. “Why can’t anyone else?”

Claude stared at them. Why was he doing that? “You mean you haven’t figured it out?”

The comment should have sounded frustrating but it wasn’t. “What do you mean?”

Claude let out a laugh. “Trust, remember? Can I trust you with what I’m about to tell you? To keep it between us?”

All Byleth could do was nod.

Claude sighed. Byleth could tell he was hesitant. “Trust…” He inhaled. “I… I do have Fodlan blood, but only on my mother’s side. The other half, my father’s half… Is from Almyra.”

Claude had Byleth’s attention. All those rumors they recalled hearing, how Claude seemingly popped up out of nowhere as the heir to Duke Riegan, was this why?

“Where I come from… I wasn’t exactly… Treated well by my people.” Claude continued. “I was viewed as this… abomination, I suppose. The people of Almyra hate the people of Fodlan, and the same can be said the other way around. That’s why… that’s why I came here, five years ago.”

Byleth let him speak. “I’ve told you my dream before, yes? I want everyone, not just the people of Fodlan or Almyra, but the world to be accepting one another. I wish to stop the prejudices that keep us apart. I don’t want anyone to ever be treat the way I was, and once we stop the Empire, I’ll be one step closer to reaching that dream.”

“Claude…” It was all beginning to click for Byleth. This Nader, Claude’s parentage, it was all beginning to make sense.

“Hopefully this all doesn’t change your view of me, huh, Byleth?” Claude smiled.

“Of course it doesn’t.” Byleth placed a hand on his shoulder. “Thank you for trusting me with this… It means a lot.”

“Heh, well if you ever need an ear for your deepest, darkest secret, I’ll be there.” Claude grinned.

Byleth was about to smile back before the aching in their chest returned.

Byleth didn’t even notice they blacked out for a split second until Claude was over them, helping them back up. “Byleth, you okay?”

They didn’t say anything at first. Claude helped them to their feet.

Byleth hesitated. Their situation wasn’t like Claude’s, not nearly to the same degree anyway. Byleth had never told a single soul about the truth; about their power, about Sothis, about anything. Claude opening up and the pain in their chest… this was the closest they were to telling someone.

Byleth sighed. If they didn’t tell the whole truth, that would be okay, right?

“Trust…” Byleth trailed off. “Can I trust you?”

Once he made sure Byleth was steady, Claude nodded.

Byleth now inhaled. “Ever… ever since I met you, Edelgard and Dimitri that day, I discovered I had this… power. It allowed me to… fix things, mistakes I made.”

Byleth hated being so vague. Claude probably had no idea what they were talking about, but they continued anyway.

“I relied on this power.” They continued. “I could prevent things I didn’t want to happen, I could turn the tide of everything, as long as I acted differently. But… after what happened with Dimitri…”

Byleth began to feel fear. The denial finally began to fade. They couldn’t use the Divine Pulse anymore. Whatever damage Dimitri caused, it caused them to lose their power. For the first time in over five years, Byleth couldn’t simply turn back the hands of time to prevent one of their student’s deaths. They couldn’t save them. If they saw someone they loved die, they couldn’t prevent it anymore. If they died, they were gone, and Byleth couldn’t do anything to stop it. And that very thought, the thought of seeing their beloved students, dead on the ground, never to breathe again, made Byleth tremble with distress. 

Claude noticed Byleth’s sudden wave of anxiety and wrapped his arm around them, trying his best to comfort them. “I can’t do that anymore, Claude.” Tears began to form in Byleth’s eyes, their voice struggling to speak. “I can’t change things any longer. I don’t have multiple chances anymore. I-If something happens, that’s it. I can’t fix it. And I can’t…”

They wiped their eyes. “I can’t save everyone now.”

“Byleth…” Claude was quiet. “I… I may not fully understand what you’re saying, but I’m here, it’s okay.”

Byleth was surprised when Claude hugged them. “I trusted you with everything and you were so accepting. Now that it’s the other way around, I don’t know what to do.” Claude laughed. Unwrapping his arms around them, Claude kept his hands on their shoulders and looked them in the eyes. “But it will be okay. I promise you; I will do everything in my power to help you. I can’t promise we can save everyone, I’m sorry, but I will save as many as I can. Together, with your power or not, we will save what’s possible.”

Byleth wiped their eyes again. With how they worded it, Claude could hardly piece together what he was just told. But here he was, doing his best to keep a promise that they would do all they could to help save everyone.

And for Byleth, that was enough.

“Claude! Byleth!”

Seteth’s voice was loud in the early dawn. Quickly composing themselves, Claude and Byleth looked to him, who was currently running in their direction, panting.

It was strange to see Seteth like this. The last time Byleth did he was frantic because Flayn was missing. To see him like this once more, whatever he had to say couldn’t be good.

“Seteth, what’s wrong?” Claude asked him.

When Seteth finally made it to the two of them, he extended his hand. In them was a letter, one that bore the Imperial crest. 

“It’s Rhea…” Seteth’s voice trembled. “Edelgard is offering a trade. Rhea for the Sword of the Creator.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Byleth only wishes they could spill the tea like Seteth.
> 
> So I saw quite a few comments mentioning… Concerns (?) If you even want to call them that in regards to Edelgard and what occurred to Dimitri. Without giving any spoilers, I just want to reassure you all: I love Edelgard and her character. Honestly there isn’t a character in Three Houses I hate. It amazes me how IS can go from the corny, one dimensional characters of Fates and then give us incredibly morally grey characters with different sides to them in Three Houses. The jump is incredible, to say the least. (I still love Fates bc I am fire emblem trash but it has MAJOR flaws)
> 
> To keep it short and simple: Edelgard isn’t going to be a crazed dictator, if anyone was worried. Even in paths that aren’t Crimson Flower the game makes it a point to show the player that fact. And I am not about to make her one here. Everything she does, she has a reason, and as the story progresses, hopefully we will see that 
> 
> The moment I decided to write this fic, I was determined to plan everything out and answer everything. I have written before, and god it was awful. I made that shit up as it went along and wrote OOC characters trying to work around plot holes that could have been easily avoided. As someone who values story above all else when it comes to any kind of media, I am embarrassed, to say the least. So I made it my goal for this fic to plan out everything and keep everything as accurate to the source material as possible. So if you have any more lingering concerns and/or questions, they should be answered later on. And if they aren’t? I am going to be really mad at myself because I made it my goal to do just that.
> 
> Sorry for the rant, I just love this game to much. I just wanted to reassure everyone that I am filled with the determination to give the game I love so much justice. Hopefully I didn’t come off as angry because I’m really not -_-


	12. The Red Empress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Team Dimitri, I salute you. We put up a good fight in the voting gauntlet. (MAYBE IF HE CAME HOME WE WOULDN’T HAVE LOST)
> 
> I was rereading some old chapters and… god I’m sorry. The amount of typos and times I accidentally called Byleth she/he instead of they/them was atrocious. I fixed what I found, and will be fixing more soon.

To say Claude was frantic would be an understatement.

He was pacing Seteth’s office, completely flustered from the news. But despite his growing anxiety, he was rather composed, to say the least. When Seteth offered to go wake the other major players of the war, Claude immediately dismissed the idea. “Having more people know about this would only cause chaos,” Byleth remembered him stating. “We devise a plan first, and then we inform the others.”

And Byleth couldn’t really blame him for this mindset. For Edelgard to offer up a trade this drastic in the middle of a war? Claude may be intelligent, but even he seemed at a loss for what had just occurred.

It didn’t help that Seteth was reading out the contents of the letter in that moment. “I understand that you would like the Archbishop returned to you.” Seteth read. “As I am sure you understand, I am not going to give her back willingly, we are in the middle of a war after all. However, I am willing to offer up a trade. I will return Rhea to you, but only in return for the Sword of the Creator.”

Byleth noticed Claude’s continued panic when Seteth read that line. “If you wish to meet, please inform me at once so we can settle on a place to make the trade. I can assure it will be nothing more than such: no fighting, no armies. I will be awaiting your response.” Seteth placed the letter down. “Signed, Edelgard von Hresvelg.”

Byleth leaned back in their seat. “Claude, what is on your mind?” It felt like a stupid question, but hopefully he would understand what they meant.

“Aside from the fact that this is an obvious trap?” You could hear the worry in his voice. “I really don’t know.”

“Even if it is a trap, what are we supposed to do?” Seteth added. “If they truly do mean to give Lady Rhea back to us, it would mean losing the Sword of the Creator in return.”

Byleth was honestly surprised Seteth was this composed. They could tell he still wanted Rhea back, of course he would, but he seemed to have a clear mind about it. He knew it was a trap just as much as Claude and Byleth knew.

“I am fine giving up the sword.” Byleth admitted. The Sword of the Creator almost felt like an extension of them now. But if it meant getting Rhea back safe, they were willing to give it up. “I am the only one who can use it anyway, its puzzling as to why she would even want it.”

“If she is working with those damn mages, it could mean anything.” Claude continued to pace. “Edelgard has really backed us into a corner with this one. We can do the trade but risk it being a trap, or we can ignore her request and then loose Rhea guaranteed. Either way there is too much risk.” He paused before he spoke again. “Not to mention the last time they did this, we got the Dimitri we have. Rhea could be in the same state.”

As painful as it was to think of that possibility, Byleth knew he was right.

“There just has to be a catch,” Claude rubbed his head, as if begging for an answer. “Edelgard hates Rhea with a passion, there is no way she would give her back this willingly.”

Several times while Claude was speaking, Byleth noticed Seteth numerously wish to speak up. But he stopped each time Claude made his point. “Then what do you suggest we do?” Seteth didn’t know what else to say.

Claude didn’t speak at first. He just stood there and stared out the window, as if looking for answers. 

“I don’t think we have much of a choice, we have to meet with Edelgard.” He finally said. “If the general masses, let alone our allies, found out that we had this opportunity given to us and did nothing? There would be uproar. We can’t afford taking that kind of blow to our army.”

Out of the corner of their eye, Byleth noticed Seteth seemed a little bit relieved. But as dedicated to Rhea as he was, Byleth knew that Seteth was aware of the risks involved in this exchange. His relief would be short lived. 

“Then what is our next plan of action?” Byleth asked.

Claude sighed. “We write our response to Edelgard, and then inform everyone else.” 

Byleth nodded in agreement. There were dedicated followers of the Church among their army, such as Marianne and Mercedes, as well as people dedicated to Rhea, such as Cyril and Catherine. Not to mention Flayn, who would surely have her own opinion on the matter. Then there were the people that weren’t overly religious, surely, they would be opposed to the plan all together. Byleth knew they had to be wary when informing them of the plan; not everyone was going to be as willing as Seteth. 

There wasn’t much to be said after that. Once the three of them were all on the same page, Claude insisted that the group get at least a few hours of sleep before sunrise.

But Byleth didn’t get any sleep. They couldn’t use their Divine Pulse. They couldn’t mess this meeting with Edelgard up, because it would be permanent.

***  
Edelgard responded rather quickly to them, much to their surprise.

She agreed to meet Byleth, Claude, and surprisingly Seteth alone with only Hubert to accompany her. Claude wished to protest Seteth’s begs to go with; Edelgard already held a grudge against the Church, and with two of its main players, being him and Rhea, within her reach? Claude didn’t like it, but it was hard to ignore Seteth’s pleas.

Everything else went about as well as they expected. Each of the people they expected to speak out did, but in the end, they agreed to the plan. Everyone knew the risks involved, but they had to trust Claude.

Byleth gripped the Sword of the Creator as they waited for Edelgard to arrive. It would likely be their last moments with the legendary blade, so they relished in those moments.

Edelgard had agreed to meet just south of Varley territory, not too far from the monastery. If Byleth recalled correctly, this is where Bernadetta, one of the Black Eagle’s students, was from. They were just on the outskirts of the civilization and they could see it from the in a rather empty plain they stood in. Looking to the long mountain range just to the northwest of them made it seem like the territory was cornered.

Claude was growing more anxious by the minute, but he tried his best to hide it. Edelgard was late, and that only intensified his worries. 

“So, you actually came.”

Her voice rang in Byleth’s head, echoing against their skull. They didn’t want to look in her direction. She was the reason this war was occurring in the first place. She was the reason she was separated from the Blue Lions for so long. She was the reason Dimitri is the way he is. Byleth wanted to hate her for every one of those reasons. But they were forced to look at her eventually.

When Byleth first laid eyes on her, they had almost forgotten that they hadn’t seen her in over five years. She had grown more since then, although she was still petite. Her white hair was now in two buns, which had horns coming through the center of them due to her crown. Her red, regal outfit was stunning, Byleth had to admit, and her Demonic weapon was by her side, although it was in its holster.

Hubert looked… menacing. The piece of hair that covered his right eye during the academy days was still there, although his hair overall was much shorter than Byleth remembered. He dawned black garments with deep red accents. His piercing yellow eye still glared at Byleth with intimidation, and truthfully it worked. Out of all the students at the academy, Byleth would say the one they got to know the least was Hubert. And deep down, Byleth couldn’t blame himself; his ominous glare was always too much for them, even at their bravest point.

“Edelgard…” Claude glared at her. “I would say it’s nice to see you, but given the circumstances, I don’t think that’s the right phrase to say.”

Edelgard gave a huffed chuckle. “Still as mischievous as I remember, I see.” She looked Byleth and Seteth, the latter inhaling sharply as she did. “I see you two haven’t change much at all either. Professor… I must admit even knowing that you lived, it is surprising to see you.”

Byleth didn’t know what she was referring to; whether it was she knew they lived during those five years, or if that information was only made known to her recently. But Byleth didn’t care. “Reminiscing now is useless, given our factors.” They stated it bluntly. 

“Hm, I suppose you’re right.” Edelgard admitted. “Then I will give you what you came here for.”

Edelgard stepped aside. Behind her extravagant robes, being held by Hubert, was Rhea. She looked… drained, completely weakened, but she didn’t look as bad as Dimitri. Her once gorgeous robes were tattered, and her beautiful green hair was not taken care of for a while. But even still, when Edelgard stepped out of the way, she rose her head, looking to Byleth. She didn’t say anything, but her weak smile was enough.

“Lady Rhea!” Seteth whispered next to Byleth, but loud enough for them to hear. Byleth could only imagine how he must have been feeling; he knew Rhea for so long, to see her like this must have been difficult.

“And the Sword of the Creator?” Edelgard rose her head.

Complying, Byleth removed the sword from its sheath. They held it in both hands, allowing Edelgard to view the weapon, no trickery to be found. Byleth’s stomach dropped at the thought of giving the weapon up, but they knew they had to part with it.

Stepping forward, Byleth was now arm’s length away from the Empress. Claude wasn’t too far behind. So far, everything looked like a regular diplomatic trade, much to their surprise.

Edelgard was about to reach for the weapon, but Byleth pulled it back. “Wait,” they said. “If it would be alright with you, I’d like to ask you some questions first.”

Edelgard took her hand back. From behind her, Hubert gave a concerned glare, the look clearly discouraging the matter. 

“I suppose that is alright.” Edelgard reclaimed her poised position. “If I can ask you a few in return.”

Byleth nodded and then started. “Why… why would you do this?” They asked the obvious question. “This war… why did you start it.”

Edelgard have a faint grin. “I gather this question was inevitable.” She claimed. “It was simply the only path I saw to achieve my goal.”

“There has to be more of a reason than that.” Claude sounded fed up with that response. Honestly Byleth was shocked he remained quiet for as long as he did.

“Believe what you will, but it is true.” Edelgard defended. “You may think my methods are cruel and careless, but believe me when I say that what I am doing is preventing the most causalities in the end.”

Both Claude and Byleth wanted to protest, but Edelgard didn’t let them. “My turn for a question,” she said. “Professor… Why did you choose the Blue Lions that day?”

The question was not what they were expecting. Why bother asking a question on a decision they made years ago? Truthfully, Byleth didn’t even fully remember why they chose the Blue Lions to begin with. They had to dig deep into their mind to find the answer. They hated to say with Claude right next to them, but it had to be said.

“Aside from their potential? Regardless of the darkness lurking within their core, the Blue Lions were the most genuine to me.” They admitted finally. “The Golden Deer were dubious, and the Black Eagles… I always could tell there was something amiss. You… you never seemed to look at me like your Professor, only a pawn you were trying to assess on the other side of the board. The Blue Lions were the opposite.”

And that was the truth.

“I see.” Edelgard stated simply.

“I know now that I was right.” Byleth wanted an answer to their other looming question, and this was the only way they were going to get it. “Dimitri… how could you do that to Dimitri? I know you two aren’t related by blood, but… He told me you’re his stepsister. How could you do that to him?”

Claude seemed surprised at Byleth’s words, as did Edelgard. 

“You won’t like the answer.”

“Tell me.” Byleth demanded her.

Edelgard inhaled. “Dimitri was simply a roadblock on my path, nothing more.”

Byleth gripped the Sword of the Creator tight, making their knuckles white. They wanted to kill her in that moment, honestly. Before discovering Edelgard’s true intentions, Dimitri always spoke of her fondly. They were childhood friends, close ones at that, that Dimitri cherished. How dare she look at someone that valued her so much as nothing but a roadblock?

In their anger, Byleth didn’t notice that Edelgard referred to Dimitri in the past tense.

“Lady Edelgard, we don’t have time for this,” Hubert protested. “Let us get on with the exchange.”

Byleth wanted to protest, but Edelgard didn’t let them. “Very well, Hubert.”

Gripping onto Rhea, Edelgard took the Archbishop and pushed her towards the opposing group. Seteth caught her, in her weak state, and immediately tried to see how well she was.

Byleth inhaled, trying to breathe away the anger they felt. Slowly, they handed the Sword of the Creator over to Edelgard, and into her hands.

Edelgard stared at the sword intently. She stepped away from Byleth, swinging the weapon as if to test it. She seemed puzzled, and a noise escaping her mouth only made her look even more so.

Byleth wanted to ask her why that was, but Edelgard once again took action. The former Black Eagle’s leader took off her glove and extended her hand, the one that wasn’t wielding the sword that is. “Until we meet on the battlefield, Professor.”

Byleth didn’t want to shake her hand, it was the last thing they wanted to do. She didn’t deserve it. But Byleth figured that since the trade was going so well, they could.

Byleth reached for her hand, and the two gripped each other.

In the palm of their hand, a sharp pain made Byleth recoil. Noticing this, Claude immediately went to their side, reaching his hand back for his weapon, although he didn’t draw it at first.

Byleth looked at their hand. It was just a small cut, but it ran deep, blood pooling from it. Eyes widening, they looked to Edelgard.

She was looking at her hand, now covered in Byleth’ blood. She seemed to marvel at it. Byleth failed to notice, but on her hand was a ring with a sharp end piercing out of it, the culprit of the cut in their hand. 

It was so faint that they could have missed it, but the blood, their blood in Edelgard’s hand began to glow.

“It seems they were right.” She stated, not saying who this ‘they’ were.

Acting quickly, Edelgard swapped the Sword of the Creator into her blood-stained hand. What happened next should have been impossible, Byleth thought. But when they realized that what they were witnessing was not a dream, Byleth gasped.

A flash of light appeared, and emerging from it was the symbol of the Crest of Flames. 

The Sword of the Creator activated in Edelgard’s grip, the whip of the blade extending and heading straight towards Byleth, who had frozen at the sight.

“Byleth!” They heard Claude yell, who at this point drew his bow and fired a shot.

What happened next made Byleth’s heart drop. 

Rhea, somehow able to stand, stood in front of Byleth, taking the hit that was meant for them. The Archbishop didn’t scream. Her green hair flew back from the impact as she fell to the floor.

“Rhea!” Seteth yelled, running to her. 

Byleth looked back to Edelgard. Claude’s arrow had struck her, just in her right shoulder. She fell to the floor from the pain, and Hubert quickly stepped in front of her. Waving his hand, he sent Edelgard through a portal of magic, away from the fight.

Extending his hand, Hubert slammed it into the ground, and a symbol appeared from it. Claude fired off another arrow, but before it connected, Hubert vanished in his own portal, Claude’s arrow flying until it hit the ground behind where he once stood.

Byleth began to tremble. The Sword of the Creator was gone. Edelgard had the Crest of Flames. They… they couldn’t believe it.

“Lady Rhea!” Claude dropped his bow, kneeling down to the Archbishop, which snapped Byleth back into reality.

Rhea was holding onto life by a thread now. Her eyes looked glossy, and they closed tightly as Seteth began to apply pressure on her wound. 

“Rhea… Oh Rhea.” Seteth applied more pressure. “Please, stay with us… Please.”

“Y-You must leave, now.”

Rhea’s voice was weak and quivered. Byleth’s chest ached at her words.

“But… Rhea.” Seteth was pleading with her.

She looked to Seteth and smiled. “I am sorry… our reunion was short lived.”

Byleth noticed tears form in Seteth’s eyes.

“My child…” She called out for Byleth. 

“I’m here, Rhea.” Byleth took her hand, comforting her.

“You… you must stop Edelgard…” Her voice remained weak, but determined to speak. “More people will continue to die if you don’t. Her… and those who slither in the dark.”

Byleth didn’t know what she meant by that, but they comforted her, none the less. “I will.” And Byleth meant it.

“Seteth.” Rhea had his attention. “I am sorry to burden you with this… I should be mine to bare, but I am entrusting you with telling them the truth… The truth of who they really are.”

A quivering gasp left Seteth’s lips. But after a few short moments, he nodded. 

“My child.” Rhea gained Byleth’s attention. “I am entrusting the Church to you now.” Her hand reached up, placing it against Byleth’s cheek. Rhea smiled.

“Byleth.” Claude’s voice wasn’t one of worry or sadness, but fear. 

Looking to Claude, Byleth saw him point to the sky. Byleth looked to what he was point at.

Off in the distance, purple circles appeared in the sky above Varley territory. Before they could verbally question what they were, a large spear appeared in the center of them. The spear made contact with the civilization of Varley.

The explosion was so close it nearly sent everyone back, despite the distance. When the explosion faded, Varley was gone.

“You must leave. Now.”

Rhea was standing now, and Byleth didn’t know how she managed it. Turning back to them one last time, Rhea smiled. “Take care, Mother.”

Rhea erupted in a glow so bright Byleth shielded their eyes. When they reopened them, Rhea was gone, and in her place was a huge white dragon, which flew towards the sky. Looking up, Byleth saw more of those purple circles appearing in the sky above them, which Rhea was flying right towards.

“We must go,” Seteth forced Byleth to their feet. “Now!”

Running, Byleth, Claude and Seteth ran from the plains, making it to the wyverns that would allow them to escape. 

The screeching of the dragon made Byleth look back one last time. Rhea, now in this form, was blasting the javelins with blasts that came from her mouth. But there were too many of them, and before long Rhea was being pelted with these javelins, green blood pooling from her.

Byleth didn’t look back once they took off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can I get a F in the comments for Rhea.
> 
> So this chapter kinda got a little bit… fanon-y? As you know, Edelgard has the Crest of Flames, but because she does not possess the crest stone, she would not be able to use the sword to its full potential. Since that Crest stone is in Byleth, they are the only one able to use it. However… I figured that if Edelgard was able to have access to some of Byleth’s blood, since blood constantly pumps goes through the heart, she would be able to use the Sword of the Creator, at least temporarily. If blood constantly passes through the heart, there would have to be some essence of the Crest stone within it, right?
> 
> IDK, maybe it’s a bit of a stretch, but that’s the way I look at it at least. Byleth’s blood is practically useless to Edelgard now, since she used up all of the essence of the Crest stone in it. Again, maybe too much to a stretch, but I’m just going to roll with it.
> 
> More shit’s going to hit the fan soon, please look forward to it!


	13. The Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, just a warning. I wasn’t expecting this chapter to get so dark but… it kinda just happened. Just be prepared for PTSD like symptoms and panic attacks in this chapter. It’s just the first part! After that, it’s fine.
> 
> ***(also Dimitri still hasn't come home and the banner is up for one more day send prayers)***

He stirred.

He felt pain, not as severe as he had in the past, but pain nevertheless. But the pain in his right eye was erupting.

**_Wake up._**

He inhaled sharply. _No. no. no._ He wanted to beg them, but he couldn’t find his voice. _Please don’t make me… please._

**_You coward. You refuse to wake; despite all you must do?_**

He trembled. How did they know he didn’t wish to wake?

**_How shameful that you must be my heir. You would prove more useful a slave rather than a king._**

He struggled to breathe.

**_To think I treated you as my own child once. I regret every moment of it. You are not of my blood; you never will be._**

_Please…. Stop._

**_To think I sacrificed everything for you. I was never able to return to my brother because of you. Shameful._**

_Stop stop stop stop._ He wanted to claw them away.

**_You let me die protecting you and this is the state you are in? You promised to save my people. I can’t believe I stood by your side for so many years._**

He felt like throwing up.

**_You’re a disgrace._**

_No. no. no. not their voice. Anything but them._

**_You truly are pitiful. Why I chose to lead your class over the other two is beyond me._**

_Please… you don’t mean that…_

**_Oh but I do. How I wish I could turn back the hands of time. Perhaps I should have joined the Black Eagles, that way I could have struck you down myself._**

This trembling ceased his breathing.

**_You are the reason for our fates. You did this. You deserve this._**

_I know… Please stop._

**_Before you avenge us? Hah! Don’t you know that’s your duty now? And what are you doing instead? Refusing to wake like the worthless weakling you are._**

He finally managed to inhale.

**_Avenge us._**

**_Avenge us._**

**_Bring us her head._**

**_AVENGE US._**

He opened his eye.  
***

Byleth only recalled the mourning that swept across Garreg Mach that week on the day of Rhea’s funeral.

When the group had returned with the devastating news, it was as if the monastery fell quiet. No one who opposed the meeting bragged that they told them so. No one that agreed to the meeting prayed to the Goddess for forgiveness. There was just… mourning.

It was hard to see everyone in this state. Morale should have been high, they only recently got back the Kingdom and, regardless of his state, Dimitri was safe once more. But instead, all that filled the monastery was grief.

It pained Byleth to look at their students. All of them mourned in different ways, but there were some that were difficult to witness. Flayn wept in Seteth’s arms, in denial of what occurred, claiming that it couldn’t be so. Catherine stayed in the Church and just… stared, stared at the place Rhea once gave her daily prayers. Cyril… he was the hardest to watch. Ever since the news arrived, Cyril refused to leave Rhea’s room. Byleth had sent a few knights up to check on him and when they returned, they said he just… stood in there, silently weeping as he looked around at Rhea’s former belongings.

After a few more days of this, Seteth requested they hold a ceremony, a funeral of some sort, to at least give everyone closure. There were no protests to the idea

Everyone gathered in the small cemetery located in Garreg Mach. Each member of the army tried to gather their best formal clothes for the occasion; all that could be seen in the cemetery was black cloth. Despite not having a body to bury, Seteth did procure a tombstone for her, something to at least commemorate her by. Many items paying homage to the late Archbishop were already gathering at the foot of the grave. 

The ceremony wasn’t very long, but it was just long enough. Seteth’s words were short, but powerful; many in the cemetery were moved to tears.

Once the ceremony had ended, Byleth took a brief moment to pay homage to their father. His headstone was just a few strides away from Rhea’s after all. Byleth turned the ring he gave them on their finger. Jeralt told them to give it to the one they loved the most, but they figured until they found that person, they would wear it themselves.

“Byleth.”

Seteth placed a hand on their shoulder, which Byleth grasped in their own. He let out a huff. “Meet me in my office, it’s time you knew the truth.”

***  
Byleth didn’t bother to change back to their normal attire before going to Seteth’s office, and it seems neither did he. When Byleth entered the room, they removed the thin cloak they wore and held it in their arms.

“Seteth, you don’t need to tell me this information now,” they insisted as they shut the door behind them. “You’re in mourning, we all are. You can wait until more time has passed.”

“No, no.” He replied immediately. “You should have known a long time ago. Please, take a seat.”

Byleth sat in the chair cross from his, placing their cloak on their lap. Seteth noticeably tensed, adjusting himself. 

“I am going to be completely honest.” Seteth began. “As trusting as Rhea was to me, when it came to you, she always hid things. I have some knowledge of who you really are, but my accounts… I fear they made do more harm than good.”

“You don’t know everything?” Byleth wasn’t mad, but they also weren’t surprised.

“I know a majority of it, I believe.” He insisted. “But my words will not be as fruitful of knowledge as coming from… from Rhea.”

Byleth looked down at their hands. It was hard to be frustrated at Rhea considering what happened to her, but knowing that she took the truth with her death was regretful. “I understand.” Byleth stated.

Seteth inhaled. “Rhea… she was responsible for your existence.”

That was one way to start a conversation.

“Rhea wasn’t who she said she was,” Seteth continued. “She was the Archbishop, that is true, but she had another identity. Some called her Serios.”

Byleth didn’t know much about the church, even now. But they knew who Serios was. She was the Saint that founded the Church, the one who defeated Nemesis, the King of Liberation, in the ancient legend.

“Serios… She was never the same after… After Nemesis killed Sothis, her mother.” Seteth looked just as overwhelmed as Byleth did. “She was desperate, desperate to get the Progenitor God back.”

Byleth inhaled, somewhat putting the pieces together themselves.

“I know that it took her many attempts, far too many, but she finally succeeded.” Seteth rubbed his eyes. “I don’t exactly know what happened to cause it to occur, but I know this. But she finally succeeded… with you. Byleth, you are a vessel of the Progenitor God.”

Byleth supposed part of them always knew this. The way Rhea treated them, their ability to speak to Sothis, everything.

“How?” Byleth asked him.

Seteth ceased rubbing his eyes. “That she never told me, but I believe I have a theory.” Seteth sighed. “I am sorry that it is all I can offer you. I didn’t wish to push Rhea. I… I always thought she would just be able to tell you herself one day, but alas…”

He blinked away his mournful look. “It doesn’t matter. What happened… Well, it happened, and we can’t change that.”

Seteth’s words stung. They should be able to change it. If only they could use their Divine Pulse, Rhea would still be here.

“Anyways, since Rhea tasked me with telling you the truth… I can only believe that she knew what I suspected, and knew I was right in my guesses.” Seteth looked them in the eyes. “I think that she took Sothis’s crest stone. I believed she placed it within you.”

Byleth swallowed. 

“I think… I believe it is within your heart.” He continued. “It would make sense, considering your lack of a heartbeat.”

Byleth stopped. “How do you know that?”

Seteth flattened his lips. “When you first received your full power after killing Monica and Tomas you were unconscious, remember? Shortly after that, I stumbled upon Jeralt’s diary and made the discovery.”

He huffed. “But… It is only a theory, I am afraid. I want to believe in Rhea. I want to believe that she knew I had figured it out and that’s why she entrusted me to tell you the truth. But she is not here to say I am right.”

Byleth took Seteth’s hand. “You are right.” They were determined he was. “I… I was able to talk to her, for a time, Sothis I mean.”

It was strange to admit. They had never told anyone about Sothis. But they knew they could trust Seteth.

“You were?” Seteth seemed shocked.

Byleth nodded. “I didn’t get to know her for very long. She only first appeared right before I came to the monastery. She became one with me after I killed Monica. She hasn’t spoken to me since.”

“I see.” Seteth mumbled. 

“Seteth…” There was something else bothering Byleth. “I don’t mean to pry but… You and Flayn… You aren’t who you say you are either, aren’t you?”

Seteth averted their gaze, but he didn’t look surprised. “What makes you believe that?”

“As close as you were to Rhea, I can’t imagine her sharing this information with just any old retainer.” Seteth chuckled at this. “That, and you and Flayn haven’t aged a day. Sorry, but ever since you told me you were her father, I suspecting something.”

He grinned a little. “So, you have found us out.” He inhaled. “Then I suppose I should properly introduce myself. I am Cichol.”

Byleth wasn’t as familiar with Saint Cichol as they were with Saint Serios, but they knew who he was. Byleth recalled seeing his statue in a room just right of the place Rhea once prayed.

“I would properly introduce Flayn as well, but she would harp on me if I did.” He stood up from his chair. “I supposed you have already figured out who she is based on my introduction, but I will let her introduce herself when the time is right.”

Saint Cethleann. She also had a statue in the room with the Cichol one. Byleth also recalled her being the daughter of Saint Cichol, so that fit.

Seteth, or Cichol, reached out his hand to Byleth, helping them rise from their chair. “I can trust you will keep this secret?”

“And you will keep my secret about Sothis?” Byleth was nodding as they spoke.

“Of course.” Seteth walked towards his bookshelf. “I have told you everything I know. I know you probably have other looming questions, such as about your father, but I have none. I am sorry.”

Byleth did want to ask about their father, but it wasn’t a surprise that Seteth didn’t know. Byleth recalled Alois telling them one day that when he and Jeralt were drunk, their father told him stopped counting his age after one hundred. Alois thought it was just because he was drunk, but based on the information Seteth was telling them now, it seemed more likely he was telling the truth.

But Byleth did have one more lingering question they had to ask.

“Just one more thing, Seteth.” They requested. 

Despite catching Seteth’s attention, they paused for one moment. As Seteth began telling them the truth, they formed a theory in their head. A theory as to why they could no longer use their Divine Pulse.

They truthfully didn’t want to know what Seteth thought on the matter; it scared them. But they had to know.

“Say… say your theory about Sothis’s Crest stone being within me is correct.” They looked away for a moment before braving to look back at him. “If the Crest stone was… damaged, would part of the Goddess’s power be lost?”

“You mean if you didn’t die first?” His response was harsh, and he seemed to apologize with his expression. “I… I suppose that would be possible.”

So that was it. Dimitri had harmed their Crest stone.

“But, Byleth, why do you ask such-“

Seteth was cut off by the door to his office being knocked on. Sighing, he walked to the door to answer. At the door was a Mercedes.

“Pardon me, Seteth.” Her voice cracked. She seemed out of breath. “Is the Professor here?”

Seteth stepped aside, revealing the person Mercedes was looking for.

Byleth’s stomach dropped. The last time someone came rushing to find them it was with news of Rhea’s trade. They knew what Mercedes had to say wouldn’t be for the faint of heart.

“What is it Mercedes?” They asked her.

The cleric’s lip trembled. “Professor, it’s Dimitri. He’s awake.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for that delicious angst :3


	14. A Sheep in Boar's Clothing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> F for all of my orbs. Dimitri never came home but another Naga did.
> 
> 1 legendary Celica. 2 Thrasirs. 1 Edelgard. 3 Nagas. 2 Peonys. But no Dimitri :(
> 
> On the bright side there is more whump this chapter :)

Mercedes told them to move urgently.

Byleth kept up with her just fine. How could they not? Dimitri, their precious Dimitri, was finally awake. And they had to see him, they had to see him awake.

But judging by Mercedes’s frantic behavior, his awakening was not pleasant.

“M-Marianne went to go check on him after Rhea’s ceremony,” she explained. “Dimitri… he was awake, awake, alert, walking…”

Her voice trailed off as they continued to jog through the halls. “Marianne tried to calm him, tried to convince him to relax, sit down. He shouldn’t be moving, walking, standing, anything! His body still hasn’t recovered, he can harm himself. That’s when he began to panic…”

“How so?” Byleth breathed.

“He… He’s cornered himself…” Mercedes huffed. “He’s petrified, and I can’t blame him. To wake up, suddenly healed and in a new location, how can you not? He’s probably frantic, and in his mental state, he probably isn’t thinking straight.”

Mercedes gave a defeated sigh. “Professor, he’s fearful of Marianne. Marianne! Of all people, he should be the least fearful of Marianne. But when I saw him… Professor, the fear on his face… It looked like he thought she was going to kill him.”

Byleth began running faster now. Were things really this bad? 

“Marianne called everyone else for back up. He was activating his Crest out of self defense constantly. She couldn’t contain him on her own. But now that he is awake, he is using the full extent of his power, me, Marianne, Lysithea, Annie, Linhardt… We could barely hold him back, even with all our power!

“He’s backed himself into a corner and ceased using his Crest for now,” Mercedes made it to the stairs leading to the cells. “Put I fear it once last long. He is going to end up seriously hurting himself or one of us if he doesn’t calm down.”

Mercedes had fear in her voice. “I… I know he just harmed you, severely. But… If anyone is going to calm him, its you. He was completely unstable when we first found him, hopefully now that he is healed mostly, he will calm to your presence. You were always the one to get through to him at the academy, you can do it again.”

Truthfully all this was hard to take in. If anything, Byleth expected Dimitri to wake up full of anger, raging about how he had to kill Edelgard, like he had back at school. But for him to be how Mercedes was describing? The Empire truly broke him, didn’t they?

“I will.” Byleth assured her. They didn’t really know if they could, but they will do all in their power to calm Dimitri.

***  
Dimitri was panicked.

He was cornered, cornered in his own cell. It was hard to move his body from his own trembling, but he did what he could to protect himself by crouching in a defensive position. His knees were against his chest, trying to shield his most important organs, and his arms were wrapped around his head, finishing at the back of his neck. “Please… don’t…” He begged them.

The mages had cornered him, their hands raised as a flow of magic drifted through them. They were attempting to restrain him, the magic they were using trying to keep him out of his safe position. But he fought against it with everything he had. He didn’t know why his body suddenly felt better than it had in months. He still was aching, some of his injuries clearly have not yet healed, but he can’t recall the last time it felt this good. And he was going to use that to his advantage.

“Dimitri, we don’t want to hurt you.” One of the voices spoke, soft and meek. What, now they didn’t want to hurt them? What kind of sick joke were they playing now? All they ever did was hurt him, why the sudden change? It was some kind of trick, surely. 

Dimitri tried not to meet their gaze, fearing that if he made eye contact, they would hurt him further. But through the small gap of his arms, he saw them trying to restrain him further. “Use caution,” one of them said. Her voice was much stronger than the first, more confident. “He is much stronger now that he is conscious, our magic is having little effect.”

He noticed another mage approach the one that just spoke. “Mercedes went to get them,” they said. “I don’t know why she insisted it so much, didn’t he hurt them before? What’s to stop him from doing it again?”

“In the state he was in, anyone would have,” the strong voice said. “Do you remember what he looked like when we first started healing him? He was delusional, now that he’s healing, he shouldn’t act out again.”

“If anyone can get him to calm down, it’s them.” The meek voice claimed. 

They were really going all out for this scheme! It seemed everyone in the room as acting like the cared about him. But he was no fool, he was going to defend himself as much as he could. 

Given the position he forced himself in, and in his increasingly panicked state, he was having a hard time breathing. His captors seemed to take note of that, and were still trying to calm him.

“Please…” He was sobbing now. “Please… Don’t hurt me…”

It was an empty plea, he knew. They would not listen. Surely later, in the mist of torturing him yet again, they would make fun of him for this beg. But he was desperate at this point, he would do anything.

He heard a quick dismissal of magic and the door to his cell opening, which made him tremble even more. Here it was, the trick they had prepared for him today. While these mages attempted to make it seem all was well, these new arrivals would be the ones to harm him. 

“You really are an idiot, aren’t you?” He imagined they’d joke. They would probably beat him afterwards, probably in this very cell. They would beat him over, and over, and over again, laughing at him for falling for such a trap.

He prepared himself for the first strike. He tensed his position, doing whatever he could to protect himself. The slight movement of his arms from said tension closed up the small gap in between his arms, preventing him from seeing anything now. But it was fine to him, at least now he wouldn’t have to see the smearing grins of his tormentors as they beat him repeatedly. 

“Dimitri look! We brought someone for you!” A familiar voice said, as cheerfully as possible. This one was here earlier, he recalled. She was keeping up this act, it seemed. 

“Just give them some space…” She informed, the others in the room, he assumed. His captors must have really wanted to harm him today if she was telling them to back up. 

Steps were coming towards him. This was it; they were going to strike him now. His body tensed further, despite his constant trembling attempting to undo itself. 

“Dimitri…”

That voice.

He knew that voice.

He should know it. After all, they had been haunting him for a while now.  
This must have been part of their trick. His ghosts never sounded this soft before, this caring. His captors were truly sick people to pull this trick again.

But even knowing that what was happening currently was a trap, Dimitri’s body still loosened up from the voice. He was too weak for them.

**_“Don’t listen to them.”_** There was their voice, the real professor, warning him. **_“Don’t be a fool once again, don’t fall for it. Don’t be weak.”_**

“I’m trying…” He managed to respond, mumbling through his harsh breathing.

“Oh Dimitri…” The fake professor cooed. “Oh Dimitri… I’m sorry. I’m so sorry this has happened to you.”

The voice almost sounded sad, full of tears. This imposter was a good actor, he will give them that. 

**_“Don’t listen to them!”_** Their voice warned again. **_“Don’t believe a word they say. Don’t let them near you!”_**

Just as they said this, he felt a soft, warm touch against his shoulder. Heeding to their voice, Dimitri lashed out at them, attempting to strike them with his arm before quickly returning to his defensive position. He even managed to get his Crest to activate.

But he missed them. In his attempt to try to strike them without vision, paired with the restraints that were working to hold his arm back, he missed. Damn it! Now they would punish him for sure.

His punishment didn’t come yet. Instead, the fake professor seemed to brush it off. “Dimitri, I am not going to hurt you.” They lied. “Please, we don’t want you to hurt yourself, just relax.”

**_“Listen to their tricks! Know we would never ask that of you, Beast. You will not rest until you bring us her head!”_**

“I will…” Dimitri promised. “I will bring you her head…”

“No, no Dimitri.” The fake continued to lie. “Listen to me… Please, I just want you to calm down, that’s all I ask.”

**_“The fake is lying!”_**

“Stay…. Stay away.” Dimitri pleaded. But he was growing weak now, he didn’t know how much longer he would be able to keep this up. The fake must have been waiting for this, waiting for his body to grow weak so they could finally harm him without risk.

Now that his arms were starting to strain, the gap between them returned. He could make out the form of his fake professor. They surprisingly had perfected their appearance, his captor looked just like them.

They must have noticed his weakness, because he could feel the magical restraints becoming more effective now. Why did he have to be so weak…

**_“They’ll hurt you!”_**

“Don’t hurt me…”

A sniffle. “Oh Dimitri… I would never hurt you.”

**_“Lies!”_**

The restraints were starting to separate his arms more. He could see the fake much more clearly now. They were tearfully smiling.

Even for a fake, their smile was still mesmerizing.

Almost… Too mesmerizing. Too real. 

**_“You fool! Don’t fall for it, they are a fake!”_**

Dimitri ceased his sobs for a brief moment as he stared at them. He inhaled sharply, so harsh it made his chest hurt.

**_“Stop being so soft! You know they are trying to trick you, so why do you continue to fall for it?”_**

His other ghosts were all yelling at him now, calling him a fool, an idiot, a feral beast. Due to their screams, his crest, the one that his captors had cursed him with, began to activate. Every bone in his body cried out in pain for the constant surge of energy, but the mages in the room seemed to be restraining him quite well, all things considered. 

**_“How dare you fall for such trickery!”_**

**_“You coward!”_**

**_“Falling from another trap when you should be focused on bringing us her head!”_**

**_“Bring us her head, beast prince!”_**

**_“Fulfill the only thing you are still good for!”_**

**_“Bring us her head!”_**

Something held his hand and his Crest activation stopped.

It… it was so warm…

He removed his arms from his defensive position to allow the warmth to easily grasp his hands. His voice still shook from his sobs and intense breathing, but the warmth in his hands made it easier to ease his tension.

He looked to what was holding them. Small hands. They were probably only half the size of his. Connected to those hands was…

His… Professor?

“Dimitri…” They spoke, their voice soft, weakened by their own sobs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love whump.
> 
> To be honest, I had a hard time writing this one. I think I wrote… 3 different scenarios? Before coming up with this one. Honestly, this is completely different from what I originally planned. It’s going to require some restructuring, adding a few more chapters, and a lot more angst, but I think it’s honestly for the better. And a lot sadder! So I am going to roll with it. I’m just going to go with this and see where it takes me.
> 
> Sorry to kinda end it here also, but I’m prolonging this because I honestly live for Dimitri suffering. So look forward to more sad coming next.


	15. The Damage Done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now I tried to get Hrid and got pity broken by a PA Olivia, which is… one of the best pity breakers I could get, I guess. BUT IT’S NOT HRID. 
> 
> But more whump yay :3

It was impossible for Byleth to stop crying.

Dimitri… poor Dimitri. He was beyond petrified. He was so scared, so… helpless. 

This was the best look Byleth had at Dimitri so far, given they were so close. The clerics had dressed him in light, black trousers, going down a little bit above his ankle, being a little too small for someone of his height. He was shirtless, but he had so many bandages covering his torso that he might as well have been wearing something over it. He was barefoot, his feet not seeming to care that they were against cold brick.

The wounds that had yet to heal and scars from the ones that had… it was hard not to look at them. They could see slashes upon slashes peeking through the bandages on his back, from what Byleth assumed was from some kind of whip. Looking at his feet again, Byleth could only assume the cold probably felt good against them, since they were still recovering from burns inflicted upon them. His arms were lined with wounds, burns, cuts, everything Byleth didn’t want to imagine. He was so thin… he probably hadn’t eaten a meal in a long time. He was skin and bones, and truthfully Byleth was surprised he was even able to get up in his state. He was much better than the last time Byleth saw him, the clerics were healing him as fast as they could, but it wasn’t fast enough.

There was little Byleth could do other than reach for his hand, gripping it until he calmed down.

It seemed to work, briefly at least. He still trembled and sobbed in the corner of his cell, but he was at least looking at them. His single pool of blue looked at them with confusion, not relief, but at least they met gazes.

Byleth didn’t turn to look at them, but they could tell by their soft sighs that everyone else in the room took this as a good sign. They heard Mercedes sniffle, holding back the tears, with Marianne and Annette following suit. Lysithea’s sigh was the loudest, and Linhardt seemed to stay quiet. There were two other clerics Byleth didn’t know in the room, but they could only imagine they felt the same.

But Byleth could care less about what everyone else thought. They just relished in this moment. They continued to rub their fingers across Dimitri’s white knuckles, and felt the palm of his hand. Their fingers ran across every scar his hands had received, likely from being broken repeatedly. His hands were so cold, despite being covered in sweat. Was he still suffering from illness? Byleth figured as much, who knows what he could have caught when trapped in that dirty cell, which reeked of humidity and human filth, probably not cleaned once in the time Dimitri was prisoner. 

Byleth tried just to stare into his eye, his one blue eye, still beautiful even though there was nothing but fear and confusion within. It was hard for Byleth’s eyes not to wander and look to his hair, white locks damp with his sweat from his panicked state. But they had to try not to look, they just wanted this moment to last. This was the first time in over five years Byleth was making physical contact with Dimitri that didn’t result in their own harm, and they loved every second of it.

But that moment didn’t last long. The whole exchange probably only lasted thirty seconds, if Byleth had to give their best guess. Once that time was up, Dimitri threw Byleth’s hands aside, his own trembling from the contact. He looked at his trembling hand with a fearful glare, acting as if Byleth had done something harmful to it. Once he had finished looking at every inch of it, he clenched his hand into a tight fist, so tight Byleth was shocked he wasn’t drawing blood. Byleth frowned at the thought that this was probably the first real contact Dimitri had with someone in years. It was probably the first time in a long time someone else didn’t try to harm him.

Dimitri didn’t return to his defensive position, at least not fully. His knees still remained close to his chest, but at least his arms were not wrapped around his head anymore. He still trembled, but his sobbing stopped for the moment. He was still fearful, but this slight improvement gave Byleth hope.

“How?” This was the first time Dimitri spoke clearly. His voice was so raspy, likely from not actually speaking in so long. Byleth could only imagine that he only used his voice for screaming in his captivity. 

They had to stop doing that. They had to stop imagining what he went through. Thinking of his pain like that would do them no good.

For now, Byleth had to focus on the Dimitri in front of them. They couldn’t do anything about the trauma Dimitri went through, they had to worry about his recovery now. 

“Dimitri, I’m here.” They tried to comfort him. They smiled, trying to hid their own pain from the sight they were witnessing. 

He didn’t say anything at first, just continued to stare at his fist. “No…” It left his mouth in a whisper.

Byleth adjusted themselves slightly, preparing to comfort him again. But the slight movement of his body made him try to cower more into the corner, as if it was even possible. “S-stay away!” He growled. “What… what kind of trick is this?”

“Dimitri,” they would say his name as many times as they needed. “This isn’t a trick, I am here, I am alive.”

“That’s not possible.” He was quick to respond. “I saw you. You fell into the canyon, at Garreg Mach! You’re dead!”

“I didn’t die that day, Dimitri.” Saying his name repeatedly gave Byleth some sort of comfort. “I’m alive-“

“Stop lying!” He demanded. “I know you’re dead! How else would you have…”

He trailed off, his breathing halting for a moment. Fear glossed over his eyes once more. “Dimitri, I am alive, I promise you.” They would continue to tell him this. “I grabbed your hand, Dimitri, I am alive.”

He seemed to inhale sharply at this. “Then… Then you’re working for the Empire now, surely.” He suggested. “You have come to torture me as well.”

“No, no, Dimitri, I’m not. I would never hurt you, not ever.” They promised him, and they meant it. “I would never join the Empire, you know that! I wouldn’t betray you like that!”

He seemed to want to protest again, but Byleth spoke again before he could. “Look! I am here, as well as Mercedes, Linhardt, and Marianne! You know them! They were part of our class, remember? The Blue Lions? Everyone else is here too, we all are. Gilbert is here, Seteth, and the Golden Deer! Look, remember Lysithea?”

For the first time Dimitri actually seemed to look behind Byleth, viewing the people behind them. His eye wandered, searching back and forth at each person. Byleth had to hope that would be enough proof for them. “See? We are all trying to help you. The Blue Lions and Golden Deer, we teamed up! We worked together to find you! We all just want you to get better!”

Byleth smiled. How they longed to see Dimitri perk up after this. How they wished he would just climb into their arms, cry it out, and then work on the path to recovery. It would take time, a long time, but Byleth was willing to help him every step of the way. All the while Linhardt would work to find a cure for this Crest experimentation. Everything would be just fine.

But things were not off to the start Byleth wished for. Dimitri just… looked at them, looked through them. His eye held no hope within it. He didn’t look convinced of anything Byleth was saying. 

His tears started to fall again, worse than before.

“How… how dare you.” He growled. 

His tone of his voice was so different from before. The fear in his voice was still there, but he seemed to be doing his best to sound intimidating. 

“How dare you.” He repeated. “You were alive… alive! And after all this time, you expect me to believe that you care for me?”

Byleth’s heart wanted to shatter. 

“How dare you!” He yelled, his fist against the wall. The major Crest of Blaiddyd that he was cursed with activated upon impact, cracking the bricks. Byleth could hardly focus on those behind them, but they noticed that the restraints on Dimitri increased. They might have heard one of the clerics mention something about sedating Dimitri as well. “You don’t care about my wellbeing! If you did care, you would have led me to the Imperial Capital and let me remove that wicked woman’s head from her shoulders! It… it is the only thing I still live for, the only thing I must do before I go rot in the eternal flames of hell myself!”

He was trying to fight against his restraints. Byleth heard someone say behind them that he needed to get away from Dimitri, but they didn’t listen. “They…” He could barely speak through the hysterical sobs. “They demand for it to be done… And I must listen…”

“Professor, back away please.” Mercedes’s voice said. “We have to sedate him before he hurts himself!”

Listening, Byleth stood, but they didn’t take their eyes off Dimitri. “How dare you! How dare you…” He continued to repeat through the sobs. He was on his hands and knees now, attempting to bang his fists into the ground if the restraints would let him. As he cried out, the clerics began working their magic, hoping to use it to make the prince go to sleep. It was working, Dimitri began slumping down, but he continued to curse Byleth’s name until he was passed out on the ground. 

All Byleth could do was watch.

***  
The clerics had managed to lift Dimitri and put him back in his bed. Byleth wished they could help, but they were frozen in place, shocked at what they just witness, hurt by what Dimitri said to them.

“Professor, he isn’t well.” Mercedes explained to them. “Everything he is saying, he doesn’t mean it, it isn’t Dimitri.”

She was trying to be comforting, but it was hard to accept. Even if it wasn’t really Dimitri, the cruel words and loud weeps came from his body. No matter how unwell he is, in that moment he believed all of it to be true. It still hurt them.

“He’s… delusional.” Mercedes continued. “Remember before Edelgard invaded Garreg Mach? He was saying things like how... How people were whispering things to him?”

Byleth didn’t nod but Mercedes continued. “Well, we think he feels he has to listen to them. Dimitri… He has had this trauma building for a while now, ever since the Tragedy of Duscur. Everyone who died that day, his father, stepmother, Felix’s brother, as well as Dedue … He thinks they are talking to him. When we were healing him, he kept mumbling to them in his sleep.”

Byleth inhaled. How could things be this bad?

“He thought you were dead all this time too, Professor. Your ‘ghost’ probably haunted him as well, demanding how they want Edelgard dead. For you to suddenly show up alive and well… He’s confused. He doesn’t know what to think anymore.”

“Can you help him?” Was all Byleth could ask.

“I… I don’t know.” Mercedes admitted regretfully. “Our magic, we can heal the majority of wounds, but we can’t heal the mind. We will just have to get him to come to his senses on his own…”

Byleth stared down at the ground. How could that even be possible? To get him to come to his senses after everything the Empire did to him? The Empire broke him, he is just a hollow man of who he was before. How could they get the Dimitri they knew back?

“Can… can I see him please?” Byleth asked, looking to the bed Dimitri laid on.

Mercedes complied. After making sure Dimitri was truly unconscious, Mercedes motioned Byleth over.

He… He looked fearful, even in his sleep. His eye was closed tightly, and even now it seemed like he was cursing Byleth’s name through mumbles. But it was the most peaceful Byleth had seen him since they reunited.

Carefully, Byleth took their hand and ran it through his hair. The white strains were so hard to get over, but they just tried to focus on Dimitri. As they continued to play with his hair, Byleth stopped to look at the place his right eye once was. The numerous scars that lined the socket… there were so many it was hard to count the exact number. It seemed healing magic was not enough for this wound, as many of the cuts were being held together with stitches that were recently placed. 

Byleth had witnessed a lot during their time as a mercenary. It was part of the job; people were brutally tortured and killed all the time. But this… this was the worst they had ever seen. 

But Byleth had to remain strong. They had to be strong for Dimitri. They would defeat the Empire, hunt down every person that ever hurt Dimitri if they had to. Once that was done, they would spend however long it took, even if it was for the rest of their life, to nurse him back to help. To get him to smile once more. To get him to laugh again. To get him to trust them again.

No one would ever hurt Dimitri again.

And they were going to insure that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You didn’t think that after that last chapter Dimitri was just going to be healed by touching Byleth’s hands, did you? Not happening, Dimitri is going to be mighty sad for a while now.
> 
> Let’s be real here: Dimitri definitely has a mix of multiple mental illnesses. His mental state and how he learns to accept it is why so many people, like me, love him. He isn’t just cured of it overnight; he suffers with it for the rest of his life. But he learns to accept it, and I think that is why so many people love him. He has mental illness and learns to live with it, LIKE A NORMAL PERSON. Anyone suffering from a mental illness can relate to him. WHICH IS WHY HE IS SUCH A GREAT CHARACTER GOD I CAN GUSH ON HIM FOREVER.
> 
> Anyways, Dimitri still has those mental issues here, obviously, but he no longer is as angry and edgy about it because… well his captors really f’d him up. Basically how he was in the game but like x10. He isn’t going to heal from this overnight.
> 
> If you want to learn more about Dimitri’s mental state, there is this great post going into his character found here: http://aminoapps.com/p/h7rkhl  
> It’s a long read but a great one! And this is basically where I am basing all of Dimitri’s behaviors on in this fic. 
> 
> Get used to the sad because it is staying for awhile :3


	16. Shield of Faerghus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks FEH for the luck. Got a Shannan with one of my free summon tickets. Would have been nice if I had that luck pulling for Dimitri -_-

They were going to invade the Great Bridge in three days.

As a result of Dimitri finally waking up, Claude gave the healers and mages that were working on him a break so they could recover. He no longer had to be healed as extensively anymore, with the remaining injuries he had being allowed to heal on their own. Once they were fully recuperated, they would go retrieve the Great Bridge, which would only increase their Alliance territory.

Dimitri had barely calmed down at all since he woke up. He still didn’t wish to go by anyone, he wouldn’t even let the healers come near him. He had gotten to the point where he could walk around his cell and not feel the need to hide in a corner, but he still wasn’t better. If anyone came into the room, he would cower and try to hide from them. As far as Dimitri knew, he was still being held prisoner by the Empire, although under much better conditions than previously. 

Byleth was still able to visit him, but they had to do so without him knowing. With Lysithea’s assistance again, she managed to create an illusion spell to create a false wall outside of Dimitri’s cell. With this, there could be someone monitoring him at all times, which was needed, and people were welcome to come see how he was doing.

All of the Blue Lions insured to come check on him, as difficult as it was. They all looked at him so mournfully, as if Dimitri was dead in front of them. The only one that reacted with anything other than that was Felix, who merely scoffed at his childhood friend’s state before storming out of the room. But despite his attitude, Byleth knew he was taking it just as hard as the rest of them. 

It was the 4th of the Harpstring Moon. It had been about four months since they woke up, and it felt like an eternity. So much had happened since they awoke from their slumber. They joined up with the Alliance. Found the Blue Lions. Retook the Kingdom. Found Dimitri. It all went by so fast, but at the same time everything felt like it was going slow. Byleth couldn’t make sense of it.

On this particular day, Byleth had promised to meet up with Felix. The young man claimed that now that Byleth lacked the Sword of the Creator, he wanted to see if Byleth’s sword skills still were up to speed. As rude as he seemed mentioning it, Byleth knew that he meant well.

Except they couldn’t find Felix anywhere. They expected him to be in the Training Grounds waiting for them, but he was not there. Byleth swore they had wandered at least half of the monastery at this point and he was nowhere to be found. 

When Byleth made it to the dining area, they knew why. Sitting at the middle table with Annette sitting across from him was Rodrigue, Felix’s father. The two appeared to be happily discussing something about battalions, if Byleth heard correctly.

Felix wasn’t exactly close with his father, Byleth recalled, so he was probably hiding somewhere in his room. Figuring that Felix would refuse to come out, Byleth was going to go train by themselves. But before they could leave, Rodrigue spotted them.

“Professor! How good to see you!” He shouted, before motioning for Byleth to come to him.

Byleth felt bad for interrupting, but they obliged. “Good to see you too, Rodrigue, but please, call me Byleth. That goes for you too Annette.” The orange haired girl pouted in response. Much like Claude before them, Byleth insisted for all of their former students to refer to them by their name now, but rarely any of them actually took Byleth up on it. They spent too long of a time referring to them as Professor, so Byleth didn’t try to force it. But they hoped over time they would be comfortable. “What brings you here? I wasn’t aware you were coming.”

Rodrigue chuckeled. “Well now that the Kingdom is under control, figured I would take a little break from it and come here. Faerghus is my home, but I spent too long cooped up there.” He admitted. “Sylvain’s father is taking care of the Kingdom in my stead.”

Byleth frowned at the mention of their former student. Sylvain had yet to become use to the damage to his arm and was constantly struggling with it. He could barely wield a training lance on his own, let alone the Lance of Ruin. His moral was only lowered when Claude strictly commanded him to sit out of the battle to reclaim the bridge due to his injuries, which did not put the two of them on good terms. Sylvain was still working diligently to get his arm to cooperate, and hopefully over time he could train it to wield his lance again. But as of currently, he was still struggling.

“I also wished to visit Dimitri,” Rodrigue change the tone. “I heard that he awoke, although he isn’t in the best condition from what I’ve heard.”

“I’m afraid that is the case.” Byleth said sadly.

Annette tried to lighten the mood. “Don’t worry! I am sure Dimitri will recover soon! He is one of the strongest people I know, so it’s only a matter of time,” she said with a smile. 

Rodrigue gave her a smile in return. “Right you are Annette, I appreciate your optimism.” 

Annette giggled. “Well, I imagine you two want to catch up, so I’ll leave you be. I’ll see you later Rodrigue, Professor!”

Annette stood from the table and walked away waving, which Rodrigue gave back in return. “Such a sweet girl,” he stated. “I am glad Felix has someone like her.”

Byleth nodded. “As am I.”

Rodrigue turned to face them. “Why don’t we take a walk, Byleth? I would love to take Annette’s suggestion and catch up.”

“I would like that,” Byleth agreed. 

The two mostly had small talk for a while. It seemed Rodrigue was up to speed on most of the things that had occurred to Byleth since they woke up. Rodrigue mostly just talked about things that went on in the Kingdom since it was reclaimed from Cornelia. Byleth didn’t contribute to the conversation too much, but they were there to listen. 

“So, any leads on those who slither in the dark?” Rodrigue asked them.

Those who slither in the dark… the name that was given to the group that experimented on Lysithea and Dimitri. The group that were allied with Edelgard. The group that was likely lead by Thales, the man partly responsible for their father’s murder. When Rhea mentioned them in some of her last words, it didn’t take long for Claude to put two and two together and dub the group by that name. Despite being the first new bit of information they found out about the group in a few months, those who slither remained an dominos force.

One that Byleth would singlehandedly destroy if they had to. 

Byleth continued to curse them out for as long as they knew their name. Those who slither in the dark were responsible for what happened to Dimitri. And for that, they were going to pay.

But unfortunately, Byleth didn’t have much of an update to give Rodrigue. “Nothing. Claude seems to believe they are just trying to reap the benefits of the war for themselves, so they are staying hidden for the time being.”

“I see…” Rodrigue trailed off. “I didn’t tell you this, but that is one of the other reasons I am here.”

Byleth stopped in their tracks. They were standing on the bridge leading to the church. “Dimitri… truthfully, I already went to see him.”

“You did?” Byleth asked him.

Rodrigue nodded. “I… I couldn’t believe it was him. I have done my best to remain by Dimitri’s side as much as I can since the Tragedy of Duscur. I have seen him go through a lot in that time. I am afraid this is the worst I have seen him.”

Rodrigue sighed. “Dimitri has always been one to hide his emotions. He would always be the first to throw down his life for an ally, but this only caused him to internalize his inner demons. I suppose I should have expected it to finally take its toll, but…”

“Please, don’t blame yourself for this,” Byleth interrupted. “You couldn’t have known.”

“I know,” Rodrigue admitted this, but he didn’t seem to believe his own words. “But that is why I am here. Those who slither in the dark… I will make them pay for what they did to him. I won’t let them do such a thing to anyone else.”

Byleth tried a smile. “You are not the only one that feels that way. Believe me when I say, Rodrigue, we will defeat them. Them and the Empire, we will end this war.”

Rodrigue attempted a smile as well. “I look forward to the day we receive that justice.”

***  
Byleth was tired.

When they had finished speaking to Rodrigue, they went to visit Dimitri again. He mostly just paced his cell for the majority of the time. He seemed to be… waiting, for who Byleth did not know. They assumed he was probably anxiously waiting for the person to torture him that would never come. Byleth only hoped that he would eventually understand that no one was going to hurt him again.

Truthfully, Byleth had been wandering the monastery grounds for a while now. The sun had set a few hours ago, but they couldn’t get themselves to sleep. So, they continued to pace Garreg Mach in one giant loop, and they would do so until they couldn’t anymore, and then hopefully they could go to sleep.

It was the sixth loop around the monastery when they heard a loud crash in the training grounds. Startled, Byleth ran to it, reaching for the Sword of the Creator that no longer was at their side. 

When they made it to the training grounds, they were relieved at first. Only Ingrid and Sylvain were there, so no one was invading Garreg Mach, which was good. But their relief quickly faded when they noticed that Sylvain was crying.

“Useless!” He yelled, banging the ground. Byleth took the time to hide. They didn’t wish to listen in on their former students, but they were worried about Sylvain. They had to keep an eye on him, even if he didn’t know it. 

“Sylvain, you’re not useless.” Ingrid tried to comfort him.

“Don’t lie to me, Ingrid!” Sylvain cried out. “A training lance. I can barely pick up a training lance without my arm going numb! How am I supposed to fight now?”

“It just takes time,” Byleth heard Ingrid kneel down on the floor next to him. “You have been making progress, you just have to keep at it.”

“It’s not fast enough!” He banged the ground again. “We need as much help as we can get to take down the Empire. Everyone is working as hard as they can to make it happen. But what am I doing? I am being forced to sit behind and try to figure out how to fight again.”

“Claude is just looking out for you, Sylvain. You can’t hold that against him.”

“I know that!” Sylvain grew more frustrated. “But it doesn’t make me feel any less worthless!”

Byleth turned their head around their hiding spot. Ingrid had pulled Sylvain into a hug and was letting him openly weep on her shoulder. The sight made Byleth want to cry themselves.

Just yet another reason why Byleth was determined to make those who slither in the dark regret what they did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> F for Sylvain’s arm.
> 
> I started writing some future chapters for this fic and oh boy. You guys. The angst. The whump. It’s so delicious. I can’t wait to get to that point :D


	17. The Great Bridge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can I get an F in the comments for Ashe, Annette, and Linhardt please? Despite my efforts, they refused to join me before the time skip in my maddening Golden Deer playthrough -_-
> 
> Hilda and Lysithea tho? God bless those queens. They be carrying my whole playthrough.

“Professor, how are you holding up?”

Byleth bounced on their horse as Ashe’s rode up next to them. The silver haired man still looked like a young boy to them, despite how much he had grown. But thankfully, the war didn’t affect his caring personality. 

“I’m alright, Ashe.” They looked up at the sky. They started to head for the Great Bridge first thing in the morning. They were nearing the bridge now, just as the sun was reaching its highest point in the sky. “Why the sudden worry?”

“Oh, well…” He seemed nervous. “It’s… it’s just your first battle in quite a while, and your first one without the Sword of the Creator. Not to mention what occurred with Dimitri…” 

He rubbed his hand on the back of his head. “I’m sorry, it’s not my intention to bring all this up…”

“It’s fine, Ashe.” They said with a smile. Truthfully, it was a lot to think and worry about. But they knew the archer was just looking out for them. “I understand your concern, but I will be alright.”

It wasn’t a complete lie. Byleth believed that they would be able to handle themselves. They were nearly fully healed, with just a few minor bruises that remained. While not having the Sword of the Creator would surly cripple their abilities, they were able to fight just fine before they came to possess the legendary sword. Dimitri… As much as they wanted to worry about him, someone would be watching over him at all times. Especially with Sylvain being nearby, he surely wouldn’t let anything happen to their former childhood friend. 

They couldn’t think about what could happen. Everything was out of their control. All they had to worry about was the coming battle. 

But Ashe must have noticed their worry. “Well, just to be safe, I wish to remain close to you for this fight, if that is okay with you.” 

Byleth chuckled. “If that would make you more comfortable.”

Ashe wanting to stick close by was fine by them. Aside from their obvious goal of recapturing the bridge, Byleth did want to make sure they kept a good eye on Lorenz this battle. The bridge was part of Gloucester territory, controlled by his father, who also was allied with the Empire. Despite his snobbish personality at times, Byleth really did grow fond of Lorenz. The purple haired noble really did care about his allies, Byleth learned that from getting to know him. And although he tried to remain strong, Byleth knew Lorenz was struggling with the idea of going against his father.

Byleth tried to push the worst-case scenarios out of their head. Everything would be fine, they had to remind themselves. Claude’s retainer, Nader, would be luring out most of the Gloucester forces. With Rodrigue joining them, he also brought along many of his own forces, increasing their already large army’s size. With all of this taken into consideration, taking the bridge should go smoothly. They couldn’t keep being pessimistic about everything.

Thankfully Ashe tried his best to keep their mind off of the impending battle.

***  
The bridge was unlike anything they have ever seen.

It was massive, at least ten times bigger than any other bridge Byleth had ever seen. And judging from the gasps of other members of the army as they approached closer, they shared the same sentiment. 

But they didn’t have much time to focus on the beauty of the bridge. As soon as they stepped foot on the damn thing, enemies were already heading towards them.

This bridge was important to the Empire, that was for sure. Serving as the bridge connecting the Alliance and Empire, losing it would cripple the enemy severely. It was already bad enough that they lost control of the Kingdom territory, so losing this was something they definitely couldn’t afford. According to Claude, one of Edelgard’s most trusted generals, Ladislava, was in charge of keeping the bridge under their control. She would surely be a formidable foe, one that they had to keep an eye out for.

As the Empire army came charging towards them, Minerva’s screech was the signal for everyone to charge back. Byleth inhaled, forcing themselves to remember that they no longer had the Sword of the Creator for this fight. Instead, they decided to fight using a Levin Sword; they figured it would be good to use since it had the ability to attack from a distance, like their beloved sword, and it would also allow Byleth to improve their magic skills further. It was still no Sword of the Creator, but it would have to do.

Ashe kept his word when he said he would stay close by. Before Byleth could even get within swinging distance of the enemy, Ashe had already shot his arrows at several of the coming foes, taking down a few and injuring the rest. All the ones that he missed the kill on Byleth was quick to end, fighting through the first line of defense with ease. 

As they continued to fight, they managed to stop the coming enemies easily, too easily. That ease sifted when reinforcements arrived. Suddenly, several knights and paladins appeared, led by a mage with blond hair and an ugly mustache. Grunting, Byleth turned around, blocking a coming attack from a fortress knight. 

As Byleth cut down a paladin, they notice Lorenz swiftly made his way past the reinforcements, heading directly for the leader. If Byleth recalled correctly, Lorenz had mentioned a minor noble of the Alliance matching this mage’s description causing nothing but trouble. Judging by the way Lorenz was charging at the mage, running full speed on his horse, Byleth could only assume this was that noble. Deciding to make things easier for him, Byleth cleared out some of the reinforcements for him, making the way to mage easier.

Lorenz was quick and didn’t even give the mage a second to attack. Despite dodging the initial blow, the mage didn’t have time to cast a spell to defend themselves. Lorenz took this opportunity to not even give the man any time to cast magic. He just continued to attack with his lance, not letting up even as the mage dodged. Eventually, the mage failed in dodging once, and that was all it took. Byleth could have sworn they heard the mage claim he shouldn’t have sided with the Empire as he died.

Byleth couldn’t help but smile. Lorenz was always dedicated to his territory and Claude, no matter what his father thought. He was glad to see he was getting some vengeance. 

“Professor!” Byleth heard Ashe yell. Byleth turned around, only to see one of Ashe’s arrows deflect a javelin that was flying right at them. Byleth raised their Levin sword, prepared to block wherever the javelin came from. When Byleth finally spotted the wielder, they gaped.

“Professor, surprised to see you here.” Ferdinand said, raising his lance. Byleth inhaled sharply. They didn’t know Ferdinand very well from the academy, but they always dreaded this very instant. They knew once the war started that they would probably have to kill a former student eventually. They might have not been close to Ferdinand, but it wouldn’t make the job any easier.

Byleth decided not to respond to what he was saying and just charged. If they didn’t talk to him, it would be easier to kill him. Ferdinand’s long, orange hair blew in the wind as he rode on his horse, clearly having the same sentiment as Byleth. Trying to get the upper hand, Byleth jumped into the air, trying to hit Ferdinand from above. But Ferdinand was prepared for this and swiftly dodged his horse out of the way. Byleth grunted from their failure. Ferdinand clearly was not going to make things easy for them.

Ashe, noticing Byleth’s struggle, joined up with their former professor to assist. Ferdinand, not wanting to be cornered, try to evenly balance his focus on both parties. He remained steady, trying to keep his distance from the two. He seemed to be stalling, not really spending too much time fighting back. Byleth knew reinforcements had to be coming. 

Taking a quick look behind them, Byleth saw the majority of the army was still further back, fighting against the mage’s reinforcements from earlier. Byleth hadn’t even realized how far ahead of the pack they and Ashe were. But they did notice that despite things seeming to go well on their end, they saw that the ground was covered in red…

They tried to push that out of their mind for right now. They trusted their students, none of them would die in this fight. They had to believe that.

Byleth felt a gust of wind from above before they dodged. Coming down on them quickly was Ladislava, who tried to take care of them quickly from above. Byleth dodged just in time, and Ashe seemed to notice ahead of time and already shot an arrow at the Empire general. However, surprisingly, Ladislava took the arrow fairly well for a flying enemy. Ashe seemed equally surprised by this, and Byleth noticed he drew his bow again for another attack.

Now that his reinforcements were here, Ferdinand wasted no time in trying to attack the two, more confident now that Ladislava was here. Despite her defenses, Ferdinand went and focused in on Ashe, fearing more arrows that could threaten the female wyvern rider. Ashe quickly dodged on his horse, but Ferdinand was clearly not giving him a moment to breathe. Worried for his safety, Byleth tried to go assist, but Ladislava was not about to let them. She continued her assault on Byleth with her axe, slicing back and forth with great force.

Byleth could handle dodging back and forth like this, but with Ladislava giving them no time to counter attack, they were growing frustrated. They couldn’t keep wasting time like this. Their mind kept flashing back to the red they saw behind them. The quicker they took down Ladislava, the quicker they could assist the other students, and the quicker they could win the bridge back. 

They heard a horse neigh to the right of them, and Byleth quickly turned their head over to where Ashe was. He was still on the horse, but Ferdinand had seemly cut the horse with his lance on its side. Thankfully, it didn’t look like too major of an injury, but the horse was clearly agitated and fearful from the cut. Ashe noticed this, and Byleth saw the look on his face that determined he was thinking critically. He would come up with a solution with this, Byleth was confident in that. 

As they continued to dodge Ladislava moves, they saw Ashe steer his horse to the sharp right. The young archer than jumped off his horse, going into the air above Ferdinand. Distracted, Ferdinand not only completely missed Ashe jumping off his horse, but also failed to hit the horse with his lance. Instead of firing an arrow at Ferdinand, Ashe shot multiple arrows at Ladislava, several of them being critical hits. The famed Empire general didn’t stand a chance.

Ferdinand looked completely thrown off by Ladislava death, stopping dead in his tracks.

Byleth hated taking the opportunity they did. It made them feel dirty, and they knew that they would regret their decision even much later in their life. But they didn’t know if they would have an opportunity like this again. And without their Divine Pulses, it was a consequence they would have to make. 

While Ferdinand was distracted, Byleth began their assault on him. Not wanting to be completely heartless, Byleth first stunned him with a blast of thunder from their Levin sword. Ferdinand flinched, and he didn’t even have a chance to counterattack when Byleth swiped through him, sending him off of his horse cleanly. His final breath was so loud that Byleth could hear it over the sound he made when he hit the ground.

Byleth’s hand trembled so much they dropped their sword. It seemed part of the Ashen Demon still lived within them after all 

***  
Returning from this battle was different from before.

This battle was obviously a victory, regaining the bridge made everything easier for the Alliance and Kingdom. But there were heavy injuries and causalities on their side. Thankfully, none of their students were killed, but several of them were injured and needed further healing at Garreg Mach. That, and Byleth was having a hard time shaking the fact that they had to cut down one of their former students.

Byleth looked up at the sky as if searching for an answer. If the Golden Deer student didn’t find them, would they have cut down even more than just Ferdinand? Would Lorenz have been there, defending the bridge? Would Byleth have killed him too?

They shook their head. They thought they told themselves they had to stop thinking about the what ifs.

They just had to focus on what they could do; how many times did they have to remind themselves of that? They would win the war and help Dimitri. After that, they didn’t know what they would do. But they would cross that bridge when they got there. 

Garreg Mach was within walking distance now. Raphael kept mentioning how glad he was that they would be able to make it back in time for lunch. But that was the last thing Byleth could focus on. Right now, they just wanted to see Dimitri; killing Ferdinand made them feel like they were taking Dimitri for granted. He easily could have been slain just like Ferdinand was and, even though Dimitri wasn’t in the best condition right now, at least he was alive.

Part of Byleth hoped that Sylvain somehow magically cured Dimitri while they were gone. Maybe he managed to get through to the prince, made him snap out of this panicked and angry daze he was in. But Byleth knew they were being optimistic.

Byleth heard screeching of a wyvern overhead and looked up to see several soldiers on wyverns coming towards them. This was normal protcall; extra soldiers would come meet the army when they were visible from the monastery so they could take any critically wounded allies for better treatment. But something seemed… off this time. Where they flying quicker than before?

“Sir Claude!” One of them yelled as they landed right in front of the army, stopping them dead in their tracks.

Claude followed suit and landed Minerva by them. “Sir, we have an emergency situation. We have received reports that the Empire is advancing on Gronder Field right now. They are heading right for the monastery! And Edelgard is leading them!”

Somehow Byleth knew that they would be killing more students today.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok for real though, F Ladislava on maddening. She can quad pretty much everything AND take hits from SEVERAL ARCHERS like a champ? Yeah, no. Not today. 
> 
> Sorry to all the Ferdinand lovers out there. Personally… I really don’t like him lol. It’s weird because I love Lorenz and Sylvain but Ferdie? Can’t seem to like him at all. I feel like I am missing something because a lot of people really seem to like him lol.
> 
> I had a bit of writer’s block with this chapter. This chapter unfortunately is just kind of a retelling of something that already happened in the game, so I am sorry for that but it had to happen. The next couple of chapters (a lot of them I have already started writing) are totally different, and full of whump. So yay :D
> 
> HOWEVER! I unfortunately will be going back to school this week, so updates might slow down. I will definitely try my best to update at least once a week, more if I can. But if I don’t update in a while, that is why.   
> 


	18. Ascertain at Gronder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *sips* Yum. These salty Smash fanboy tears taste delicious. 
> 
> CONGRATS BYLETH. CONGRATS FIRE EMBLEM FANS. WE WON YET AGAIN.

The Empire suddenly attacking on Gronder was all part of their plan, Byleth knew. They must have known they were planning to attack the Great Bridge. They knew that the Alliance and Kingdom forces would be crippled because of it. Some major players of their army were to injured to join up at Gronder. But at the same time, Byleth knew they didn’t have a choice but to combat the Empire there. If they didn’t, the Empire could reach the monastery by sunrise the next day.

They didn’t have time to debate it; they had to head to Gronder right now. If they didn’t, everything would be at stake.

Claude remained just as worried as they neared closer to Gronder. Along with a large portion of their army, several of their former students were going back to the monastery as well. Ingrid, Raphael, and Leonie had injuries that would require further healing back at the monastery, and Marianne was going with to assist with said healing. Some of their strongest hitters not being present at this battle made Byleth increasingly nervous. 

And Edelgard would be at Gronder. She was leading the Empire herself. The last time Byleth saw her, she killed Rhea and took the Sword of the Creator. Now that Byleth would meet her again on the battlefield… they didn’t know what to think.

Deep down, they supposed part of them wanted to kill her. They knew it would more than likely come to that either way, but to actually wish for it was something they didn’t want to feel. Regardless of what Edelgard did, she was still their former student. In addition to that, Dimitri spoke fondly of her during their childhood, so there was at least some part of her that was human enough to care about. 

But she caused to much suffering throughout Gronder to make Byleth think twice about what they had to do. She brought upon this war, killed Rhea, and allowed those who slither in the dark to experiment on Dimitri. She would receive no mercy from them.

Gronder was closer now. Byleth could hear the roars of the Empire soldiers growing ever closer. It was hard to even think straight, but they had to remain focused. Without a large portion of the army, and without their Divine Pulse, they had to.

Byleth stepped on the battlefield. Somehow, they ended up in the same spot that the Blue Lions were stationed in during the Battle of Eagle and Lion. Across the river was the Empire army, split into two different groups. Where the Black Eagles where was Edelgard herself, standing alongside Empire soldiers. On the other side, where the Golden Deer were once located, was a large group of mages, undoubtably those who slither in the dark. Byleth expected someone like Thales to be alongside them, but he was not. It didn’t even look like anyone was leading them, but Byleth knew they were fighting with Edelgard.

Byleth inhaled. They pulled out their Levin sword. Just looking at Edelgard made them long for the Sword of the Creator even more. 

The fighting started without another word. With a roar of battle and screeching of wyverns, they were charging at one another. If the battlefield was the same as it was five years ago, the station located in the center of the plains would be key to turning the tide of the battle. Judging by the quick glance they took; it was already occupied by Empire soldiers. If Byleth wanted any chance of winning this battle with as little causalities as possible, they had to fight through it. They had to gain control of that area.

As Byleth ran towards the center, it seemed several of their former students had the same idea. Annette and Ignatz were following close behind them, firing off magic and arrows ahead of Byleth, taking down some horses running towards them. As Byleth ran, they just barely managed to dodge a quick firing of several arrows towards them. So the Empire already took control of the center like they suspected, all the more reason to get over there as quick as possible. 

Thankfully, Annette and Ignatz had managed to keep a number of enemies off of them, so Byleth managed to make it to the center quicker than expected. Whoever was on this center platform, Byleth had to admit that they were one sharp shooter. They had nearly grazed them several times on their attempt to reach it, despite Byleth mainly focusing on dodging. 

But when Byleth finally made it to the top of the platform, they wished they hadn’t. 

“Professor, is that you?” Bernadetta’s voice still trembled, even now. But despite her nervousness, she remained steady, holding onto her bow like her life depended on it. 

Byleth hated the sight of her. Seeing her in person should bring them joy, Byleth rarely saw her leave her room after all. Why was it the few times they saw her outside of her seclusion, it was in the mist of tragedy?

“You’re with the enemy. That means… I’ll have to kill you.” Byleth could tell that she didn’t wish to. Even though she feared practically everything, Bernadetta was always kind hearted, her coming out of her room to give Byleth condolences after Jeralt died was proof of that. 

Like Ferdinand, they would not speak to her; it would make this easier.

Running towards her, Byleth tried to throw Bernadetta off guard and use a lighting spell to get the upper hand, but the sniper saw this coming. Bernadetta had managed to dodge and fire multiple arrows at them. Byleth had managed to dodge all but one that grazed them in the leg, but the pain was intense. Had Bernadetta coated her arrows in poison? For now, Byleth had to get that possibility out of their mind; they had to gain the center if they wanted a chance.

Trying to close the distance, Byleth rushed towards Bernadetta, but the archer dodged yet again. She was certainly not making things easy for Byleth. Firing another set of arrows, Bernadetta jumped back, trying to get some space between her and Byleth. But Byleth saw this as an opportunity. As Bernadetta was in the air, mid jump, Byleth used another thunder spell to hit her. This time, sniper was not able to dodge.

Bernadetta wasn’t fazed too much by the thunder spell, but before she knew it, Byleth’s Levin sword made contact with her chest.

Bernadetta clutched her chest in pain. Even after that magic attack, she was able to avoid the sword slicing through her major organs, although it didn’t make the injury any easier. Byleth couldn’t help but pause and stare at what they had done. _How could they._ How could they cut down not one, but now two of their former students?

Byleth thought they might have heard someone call out their name, but all they could focus on was Bernadetta as she struggled to stop the bleeding in her wound.

“Professor” Finally, Annette’s voice broke through, but Byleth didn’t have much time to process it. Annette was already dragging them off of the center platform by their arm, using all of her strength to pull them. Byleth wondered why she was so eager; the center platform was key to winning this fight. Why risk losing it?

But just when they stepped off the platform, Byleth saw why. The platform was no more. Intense flames erupted from it now, the heat pushing Byleth and Annette back. The two fell to the ground, but even then, Byleth could barely focus. Bernadetta’s screams as she erupted into flames along with the center was all they could focus on. 

Byleth looked over to Annette, who was struggling to get back up. Whipping their head around, Byleth saw two mages come towards them, ready to try and strike them down. But before they could, Felix had already finished them off.

“What the hell were you thinking?” He yelled, helping Annette to her feet. 

The mage wiped herself off. “Saving our Professor’s life Felix!” She yelled back. “I can handle myself!”

Felix scoffed. It was strange seeing him back down so easily. He didn’t say anything else to Annette and instead went to help Byleth to their feet. “Stay focused.” He told them. 

Byleth tried their best to do just that as they continued to fight. They had to get to Edelgard; the quicker they could, the quicker this fight would be over. And considering they were still at a disadvantage, that would be ideal. Byleth tried to avoid other former Black Eagles students as they ran, but did see several of their allies fighting against them. They saw Lysithea and Mercedes struggle to hit Petra as she dodged their attacks. They saw Ashe try to hit Hubert from afar, who was currently fighting in close combat with Lorenz. 

But somehow, the fighting was not going too bad. Byleth assumed that Claude, Judith, and Rodrigue had taken the side with the majority of the those who slither in the dark members, because they didn’t really see any of them. Thankfully, it seemed they were at least able to hold them off and keep the two groups from really teaming up on them. The fighting with the other former students went about as well as it could, with all of them eventually retreating with the help of mages when they got too injured. Part of Byleth was thankful they didn’t have to see any more Black Eagles students be cut down, but at the same time, it made them furious. Bernadetta didn’t have that luxury. 

Eventually, Byleth saw Edelgard.

She stood on a healing platform, glaring at Byleth as they drew closer. Byleth could tell by the look in her eyes that she did not want to fight them, but she knew they had no choice.

Running towards her, Byleth swung their sword at them, trying to force her off the healing platform. But Edelgard was not about to make thing easy for them. She managed to block the sword with her divine weapon, the sound they made when connecting making Byleth’s ears ring. Quickly drawing back, Byleth tried to use a number of magic spells to force her off, but Edelgard still stood her ground. If only Byleth had the Sword of the Creator, Edelgard would have been off that platform by now.

Trying to change things up, Byleth pulled out a silver sword they kept at their side, hoping the stronger material would be enough. Edelgard struggled much more blocking this weapon, and eventually was pushed off the healing platform, but she didn’t do so without a fight. Edelgard had managed to get a successful hit on Byleth’s shoulder, as if for revenge for the arrow Claude shot at her shoulder when they last saw each other. The wound was reasonably sized, and blood poured from it, but Byleth pressed on: they couldn’t give up now that she was off of the healing platform.

Trying to keep her as far away from the healing platform as possible, Byleth continued to push Edelgard back with their sword. Edelgard’s axe was large, and she was able to use it to make blocks and attempts at hits easily, but Byleth kept on her. Eventually, Edelgard got another hit in on Byleth, grazing them in the side, but not before Byleth sliced at Edelgard’s leg. The Empress somehow managed to stay standing, but that quickly faded when Byleth sliced at Edelgard’s chest. It was a shallow cut, but it was enough to make Edelgard fall to the ground in defeat. 

Byleth was breathing heavily now, their hand shaking as they gripped their sword tighter. Edelgard was down on one knee, using her axe to hold herself up. She too was panting, dirt covering her face. She shifted slightly, but before she could move anymore, Byleth had their sword at her neck.

Edelgard looked away. “After all this time, I always feared you would be the one to strike me down.” She panted.

Byleth wanted to look away as well, but they had to remain strong. “I don’t want this,” they admitted. “I _never_ wanted this. You think I want to fight my own students? Cut them down like this?”

Edelgard chuckled. “If you can’t face the reality of war, maybe you shouldn’t drench your hands in it.” She said with attitude. 

“You can’t tell me you wanted this either.” 

Edelgard finally looked back at them. “But unlike you, I accept it. I know what must be done, and I am willing to do whatever it takes.” She shifted slightly. 

“Even if it means killing your friends?” Byleth questioned, their grip on their sword loosening.

“I told you I am willing to do whatever it takes.” Edelgard repeated herself. “This is the only way to prevent the most causalities in the end.”

“Edelgard-“

“Stop talking to me like you even knew me!” She yelled. “You weren’t my Professor; you hardly knew me!”

Byleth knew she was being a hypocrite. Edelgard admired them the moment the two met, they knew that. But regardless, they tried to get through to her. 

“Maybe so, but regardless, you were still my student. In the Blue Lions or not, it was my job to look after you.”

It wasn’t the time for this, Byleth knew. But if they were going to get answers, now might be the only time.

“Besides, I feel like I know you after what Dimitri told me.”

Edelgard looked away again, not saying anything. But she seemed to keep her eyes focused on something.

“Edelgard, I have to know why,” Byleth began to push her. “Why did you do that to him?”

Edelgard’s eyes darted back over to them. “I recall telling you he was just a roadblock, and that is all I have to say on the matter.” She breathed in. “If anything, you should be thankful he met the fate he did.”

Byleth widened their eyes in anger. “How could you say such a thing?” They growled. “You… You put him through the same pain I know you went through. How does that have anything worth thanking you for?!”

Edelgard looked confused, adjusting once more. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Byleth gritted their teeth. “You know exactly what I am talking about! He…”

Byleth sniffled, dropping their sword of their side.

“Professor, his fate could have been much worse.” Edelgard insisted. “Killing him was the best option.”

Byleth shot their head up gasping. They looked to Edelgard, who seemed to look through them. But Byleth knew by the look on her face that she was telling the truth, or at least what she believed to be the truth. 

“You… You don’t know.” Byleth muttered.

Edelgard tilted her head. 

Byleth brought their hands to their head. “No… No Edelgard.” They should have known. Edelgard wasn’t heartless, that much they knew. She would never put Dimitri through the same pain she went through. Those dastard mages. They claimed to be working alongside her, but really, they were working right under her nose. “Dimitri isn’t dead.”

Edelgard shifted again, but Byleth knew she wasn’t going to fight back, so they let her. “What?”

“We found him, in Fhirdiad.” Byleth explained. “Those who slither in the dark? They… they did things to him.” 

Edelgard’s eyes widened as Byleth continued. “He isn’t the same anymore, Edelgard. Cornelia, Thales, those dastards you allied with? They did the same awful experiments to him as they did to you and then some.”

“Y-You’re lying.” Edelgard stuttered.

“I wouldn’t lie about this.” Byleth stepped back. Despite what her words suggested, Edelgard somehow knew they weren’t lying. “Edelgard… Please. You can’t trust them. I don’t think I can convince you to change your mind in this war, but you have to believe me on this. I don’t know your reasoning, but if you continue to ally yourself with them, things will only get worse.”

This time Byleth was sure of it. Edelgard looked over their shoulder, regret in her eyes.

Turning around, all Byleth saw was an axe, being wielded by a girl with two blue bows in her hair. 

But she was taken out by another axe.

The hand axe was thrown at such a force that the girl was killed instantly, her body flying to the side. She didn’t even get a chance to scream. The axe that had almost killed Byleth was flown in the opposite direction.

Gasping, Byleth looked to the person who threw the axe. Somehow, he had managed to grow taller, as if he wasn’t tall enough before. His dark skin was lined with new scars, but he looked as determined as ever. 

“Dedue…” His name felt strange on Byleth’s lips. They thought he was dead all this time, but here he was, right in front of them. Byleth wanted to run to him, embrace their former student to insure he was real, but he was not finished. Pulling out another axe, he threw it in the direction of Edelgard.

But by the time the axe was thrown, she was gone, being taken away by Hubert just as she had before. But Byleth saw the look in her eyes as she left. Edelgard was speechless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> He showed up a chapter late than normal, BUT OUR KING HAS RETURNED.
> 
> I really, really, REALLY love Dedue. Like seriously. When he came back after ‘dying’ I actually lost it. Was it kinda obvious he wasn’t actually dead? Maybe, but I still was like OMG DEDUE. I just love him.
> 
> Also, I figure now would be a good time to mention this now that it is announced. But the Ashen Wolves DLC will more than likely NOT be a part of this story. I have many future chapters either finished or started to change it. I apologize, I wish that I could (I know nothing about Constance but I LOVE HER) but I just don’t think it’s possible. Sorry if you wanted them to!


	19. The Vassal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this update was quick.

Once Edelgard had vanished, the rest of her army was quick to follow. They didn’t know how they managed it, but it seemed that despite their disadvantage, Byleth’s army managed to beat hers. They sighed in relief, thanking Sothis that it didn’t go as badly as it could.

Part of their mind still focused on the students they had to cut down. Bernedetta… They still couldn’t believe what Edelgard did to her. She was always so innocent, full of anxiety, but harmless. For Edelgard to let her body erupt into flames like that… It was hard to imaging Edelgard once called her a friend.

Speaking of Edelgard, her not knowing what happened to Dimitri was a complete surprise to them. For being allies with her, those who slither in the dark were clearly using her to their own advantage. Byleth was only left to wonder what else they could have planned that Edelgard didn’t know of. They could only hope Edelgard would realize the mistake she made allying with them. 

But for now, they tried not to think about that. This was a happy time: they won the battle and Dedue was back. If anything, this battle went better than they ever could have imagined with his return.

“Men from Duscur,” he would explain to them. “They saved me after I helped His Highness escape. If it were not for them, I would not have survived.”

Byleth tried to let the Blue Lions have their moment with him. Ingrid and Marianne would definitely be mad to find out Dedue had returned to them and they weren’t here to witness it. 

But on the way back to Garreg Mach, Dedue came to speak to them. Byleth knew deep down that he would ask the questions they wished they didn’t have to answer.

“His Highness,” he began. “Is he alive? Is he with you?”

Byleth sighed. “He is. But…”

Dedue pressed his lips together. “He isn’t well.”

Byleth nodded. “One of the groups Edelgard allied with, those who slither in the dark, they did… horrible things to him. We managed to rescue him, but he isn’t in the right state of mind.”

Dedue’s expression seemed to change. He didn’t seem upset upon hearing this news. “Professor… there is something I must speak to you about. Claude is in charge of this army, I am assuming? He will have to hear this as well.”

Byleth stopped in their tracks. “What is it?”

“It is the reason it took me so long to join up with you.” Dedue stated. “My people and I did some investigation after I recovered.”

Byleth was intrigued and wanted to press him for more information, but he continued speaking.

“But if it is alright with you, I would like to see His Highness beforehand. After that, I will gladly meet up with you and Claude to tell you what we have figured out.”

Byleth didn’t mind waiting.  
***  
Dimitri laid in his bed, staring up at the ceiling.

It had been quite a while since he was brought to his new cell. Despite his attempts, it seemed he would not be able to get out of here as easily as he thought. Garreg Mach… it was well guarded. The figures of his former friends were everywhere, and they surely would not let him escape, despite the danger he posed to them. Not to mention that blasted professor.

Dimitri was fearful of them at first, but not anymore. As far as Dimitri was concerned, they were nothing more than a demon now, one almost nearly as bad as him. For their ghost to haunt him for so long only for them to turn up alive? And not only that, but act like such a caring figure? Dimitri scoffed at the thought, he would not fall for their tricks so easily. 

He just had to get out of here, and he didn’t have a lot of time. The ghosts haunting him demanded Edelgard’s head. And he would present it to them.

Dimitri looked outside of his cell. Beyond it, he saw a slight wave of magic across the wall. He had figured out by this point that others were watching him beyond the wall, hiding in plan sight. He looked way, not wanting to give them the satisfaction of looking their way, whoever it was. 

Bustling sounds from outside of his cell made him shoot out of his bed. Backing against the wall, he held himself in a defensive position. Sylvain… he had come to visit him once. Dimitri knew he was completely harmless, so he simply didn’t talk to him, but he wouldn’t shut up. He had mentioned that the army had went to go capture the Great Bridge. Were they back? 

Byleth walked in.

And he wanted to kill them.

“You!” Dimitri growled, walking towards the cell entrance. “How dare you show your face-“

Dimitri stopped when he saw who joined them.

Dedue. But it was not the same Dedue that haunted him. This Dedue had changed, almost as if he had aged since the last time he saw him. 

**_“The fake has brought another!”_**

But then why…?

“I’ll let you two have a moment,” Byleth said before leaving. Dimitri breathed a sigh of relief, the last thing he wanted was them here.

Dedue smiled. 

“Your Highness-“

“Don’t.” Dimitri warned. “What are you? A ghost? A trick?”

Dedue’s smile flattened. “Neither, your Highness.”

**_“Lies!”_ **

“Don’t lie to me!” Dimitri yelled. “You must be one or the other. I saw you die.”

Dimitri was sure of that, even more so when they saw Byleth fall into the canyon. It was almost like it happened yesterday. Dedue had just helped him escape his Fhirdiad cell, escape his execution, and they were running, trying to escape the Kingdom. But Cornelia’s men interfered. The last time Dimitri saw Dedue, he had a sword sticking out of his shoulder, blood pouring from the side of his lips, screaming at Dimitri to run. There was no way he could have survived. 

“I didn’t die that day.” Dedue claimed. “Critically injured yes, but I survived. Remember five years ago? That Duscur rebellion our class stopped?”

Dimitri recalled it.

“Those men… They saved me.” Dedue’s smile returned. “They saved me, nursed me back to health.”

Dimitri scoffed. But despite his attitude, Dedue continued.

“Once I recovered, we began searching for you. But… we never did.” Dedue fell to his knees, placing his head on the ground. “I can’t express how sorry I am that I didn’t find you sooner. Please, forgive me, your Highness.”

Dimitri gritted his teeth. “Get up!” He yelled. How dare they. How dare they portray Dedue this way, so real. He wanted it to stop. “

“Your Highness-“

“I said stop!” Dimitri’s breathing heightened. “Stop trying to trick me!”

The Dedue that haunted him would never do something like this. This Dedue was an illusion, a trick by that wicked professor. He was sure of it. 

Dedue didn’t say anything for a few moments, but he did rise. He ran a hand across his scared face, as if thinking.

“The Professor told me what happened.”

Dimitri froze.

“I always knew Cornelia was a wicked woman but… I never expected her to so something like this.” Dedue continued despite Dimitri’s body language telling him to stop. “I blame myself for what happened. I should have been there for you-“

“Don’t.” He shouldn’t be falling for this trick. He shouldn’t be telling this illusion to stop blaming himself. But even if it was a trick, the thought of Dedue blaming himself for the horrendous torture Dimitri went through… it was too much to bear. It wasn’t Dedue’s fault; it was the Empire and no one else.

“But I must.” Dedue inhaled. “I owe you my life after you saved me from Duscur. I promised to be your vassal from that moment on. And I failed.”

“Please… stop.” This was becoming too much. This Dedue was too real. 

“Dimitri.”

Dimitri shot his head up. Had… had Dedue just?

In all these years of knowing him, Dimitri never heard Dedue call him by his name. Not once. When Dimitri saved Dedue, he was always referred to as ‘Your Highness’ or some other formal name. All Dimitri wanted was to become friends with Dedue, for them to view each other as equals. But if never came.

Until now.

This Dedue was real. This wasn’t his ghost. This wasn’t a trick. Dedue was really right in front of him.

Dimitri was overwhelmed. He fell to his knees but kept his eyes on Dedue.

“Dimitri!” Dedue repeated, placing his hands against the magical seal, wishing he could reach the prince.

“You’re really here.” Dimitri’s voice cracked admitting this. 

Dedue gave a light smile. “I am.”

At that confirmation, tears began to fall from Dimitri’s eye. He placed his head on the ground. 

“Dedue… Forgive me please.” He breathed. “Forgive me for leaving you. Forgive me for leaving you for dead. Forgive me…”

“There is nothing to forgive.” Dedue still couldn’t reach Dimitri, but he bent down onto the floor, trying to get to his level. “I never blamed you.”

But Dimitri could hardly listen to him. Dedue was here and real. That meant none of this was a trick. The healers that came to check on him, his former friends that came to visit, the professor… they were all real. His entire world view up until this point… He believed it all to be a lie and it was real. 

Not that it would change anything. He still didn’t want any of them near him. They still didn’t want to see his friends in this state. He still held resentment towards the professor. 

But with Dedue here… Perhaps things would be easier.

***  
Edelgard hated having Thales so close to her. 

Hubert did not take his eyes off of Edelgard the whole time Thales healed her. And Dorotha being gripping her hand as Edelgard fought through the pain made it bearable somewhat. But she hated the sight of Thales. 

The Professor had no reason to lie to her. They were allied with the enemy, so part of Edelgard didn’t want to believe them. But why would they lie? And after everything Thales did, how could Edelgard believe for one second that he would be truthful?

“Good as new.” Thales growled. “I recommend not fighting for a while, but for now your injuries are healed.”

Edelgard released her hand from Dorothea’s and tested her grip. But she didn’t keep her eyes off of Thales.

When the dark mage looked like he wanted to leave, she was not about to let that happen. “Wait.”

Thales complied. “What is it?”

Edelgard breathed in. “The Professor… They told me that Dimitri was alive.” Thales remained unmoving. “Is it true?”

Thales didn’t respond at first. He just stood there, clearly wanting to leave. Next to her, Edelgard noticed Hubert tense. Dorothea didn’t seem much better.

“I suppose there is no point hiding the truth from you any longer.”

Those words made Edelgard shoot up from her seat. “How could you!” She yelled, trying to stomp towards him, but Hubert held her back. “I thought we agreed we were allies, yes? How dare you lie and tell me he died!”

“I simply twisted the truth.” Thales looked away. “He might as well be dead in his state.”

That sentence alone was enough proof to Edelgard. Thales was practically admitting to experimenting on Dimitri as well here. “What was even the point of it? I know he is in the hands of the enemy now. Why even play with fire like that?”

Thales chucked, which Edelgard hated. “Perhaps in time it will be worth telling you, but for now it is not. But trust me, Empress, he is no threat to us currently.”

“Don’t avoid the question!” Edelgard yelled. “You are planning something. Planning something behind my back. What is it?”

“It doesn’t matter what our objective is, Edelgard.” She hated when he used her name. “You know that you can’t win this war without us. Resent us all you want, but you will stay allied with us if you want a chance.”

Edelgard wanted to curse him out. For him to experiment on Dimitri was enough of a reason to. And the fact that they clearly had their own agenda that they were hardly trying to hide was even more so.

But things were not looking good in this war. They lost at Gronder. The Kingdom and nearly the entire Alliance were against them. The Empire needed all the help they could get. And Thales knew that.

Edelgard’s silence was enough to make Thales chuckle. “I see we have come to a mid-ground then.” He summoned a portal to leave. “I will be working if you need me. Until then, for the good of this country, please stay rested, Edelgard.”

Edelgard hated how Thales made her look like a fool.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dimitri and Dedue’s bromance gives me life.
> 
> So we are heading once again into full on canon divergence next. Next chapter is a set up to what’s to come, and then, oh boy. Shit’s going down. I can’t wait :D


	20. Hope for the Future

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> VOTE FOR DIMITRI FOR CYL4 PLEASE

This was the best Byleth had seen Dimitri in a long time.

Granted, he still wasn’t himself. He still was traumatized and panicked at times. But since Dedue came back… he was better.

When Byleth saw Dimitri with Dedue, he almost acted like his normal self again. He acted on edge the entire time, but Dedue could at least have some kind of conversation with him. They typically didn’t last long, and eventually Dimitri would show signs of panic, but it was progress.

Dedue truly was a saint the entire time. He rarely left Dimitri’s side. The clerics still didn’t think it was safe enough to remove the magical seal, but Dedue was always keeping an eye on him from the other side. Part of Byleth felt terrible; after everything he’s been through, Dedue hasn’t given any time to himself, and he deserved it. There were a few times where Byleth would find him in the greenhouse, but it was normally only when Dimitri was being checked up on and was sedated. Otherwise, he was always with Dimitri.

Although he acted alright with Dedue, the same cannot be said with the other students and Byleth. The situation had been improved significantly, but there was still tension in the air any time someone other than Dedue was in the room. It had at least gotten to the point where Byleth could be in the room and Dimitri not go cower in the corner, fearing for his life. But Byleth could tell that he was still on edge while they were there, and the same went for the other students. 

Aside from Dedue, the only other person that Dimitri would connect with was Rodrigue, which wasn’t surprising to Byleth. He was Dimitri’s father figure, after all. Byleth doubted there was anything the world could do to Dimitri that could make him not trust Rodrigue. But other than Dedue and Rodrigue, Dimitri was still scared, scared or angry, that is.

Whenever Byleth had time, they would utilize the illusionary wall in the cell just to watch Dimitri interact with Dedue or Rodrigue. As long as Dimitri didn’t know they were watching, Byleth was able to see him, watch him act somewhat like a normal person. Like the Dimitri they once knew. 

It pained them to know he wouldn’t act that way with them, but at least he could be somewhat calm with these two.

There was one day in particular that stuck out in Byleth’s mind. One day where Dimitri talked with Rodrigue and he acted the closest to his old self that Byleth had seen in a while.

“Rodrigue…” They recalled Dimitri starting. 

Rodrigue was skimming his notes at the time. Dimitri wasn’t typically one to start conversations, and Rodrigue didn’t want to pressure him into speaking. So he normally brought something else to do in the cell room when nothing was going on, which was most of the time. Still, Byleth knew Dimitri at least appreciated Rodrigue’s company.

“What is it, Dimitri?” Rodrigue had asked, pushing his notes aside. He seemed startled that Dimitri even wanted to speak.

Dimitri seemed nervous. “Can you… Do something for me?” He made his hands into fists as they sat upon his legs. “If-If it isn’t too much trouble…”

“Anything,” Rodrigue affirmed. “Nothing is too much trouble for you.”

Dimitri seemed to doubt his words, but he continued anyway. “Can you… Perhaps…” He stuttered. “Can you get me something to cover this up?”

Dimitri didn’t say what it was, but his hands motioned to the place his right eye once was. The wound was still harsh and healing, but it was much better than it was when Byleth first saw him.

Rodrigue didn’t say anything, at first. “I would happily, Dimitri, but…” He stood up from the stool he sat on. “I do believe that wound still needs time to heal, does it not?”

Dimitri brought his fingers up to his eye socket delicately. He didn’t touch it, but Byleth could see his fingertips narrowly miss the stitches that still held old wounds together. Healing old wounds like that were difficult. Fresh wounds were much easier to heal, but wounds that have aged are not so. The clerics healing Dimitri focused nearly all of their energy healing life threatening old wounds. Wounds like his eye… those would be better off healing on their own, at least for the sake of the healers’ energy. 

“I fear that if I got you something to cover it up, it would only irritate the wounds that still need healing.” Rodrigue had his hand on his chin. 

Dimitri grunted and looked away from Rodrigue. Byleth could see him begin to tremble. “But… I hate it … I don’t want anyone else to see it…” There was anger in his voice.

“I understand that.” Rodrigue was careful to remain calm while also staying the voice of reason. “But you must give the wounds time to heal.”

“Rodrigue…” All anger that once existed in Dimitri’s voice was gone. It was replaced with sadness. “I… I hate these wounds.”

Rodrigue frowned. “I know.”

Dimitri wiped his eye of tears as he began to breathe heavily. “It… it makes me look weak…” He held back the sobs for now. 

“Dimitri, it doesn’t make you look weak.” Rodrigue comforted him.

“Don’t lie!” Dimitri snapped. “I hate showing my face to others looking like this! Can you imagine what Edelgard will do when she sees me like this? She’ll laugh, I am sure of it! She’ll laugh at how weak I am. How will I have the strength to sever her head from her shoulders if she is laughing at me?”

Dimitri was standing within inches of the magical seal now. Rodrigue didn’t flinch, but he did sigh. “Anyone who laughs at the proof that you survived is not worth your time.”

Dimitri backed away from the seal, running his hand through his hair. The white strands were never any easier to see. “Survived, huh?”

Rodrigue didn’t say anything. Dimitri gave the slightest shake of his head before he sat back down on the chair in his cell. “I don’t know if I would call this surviving.”

Rodrigue walked closer to the seal, as if it was even possible. “It is.” He was gentle with his words. “Your injuries, your scars… they are proof that you endured the unthinkable. I know you think they make you look weak, but they do the opposite. They are proof of your strength, your bravery.”

Dimitri didn’t look at him, but judging by the look on his face, he didn’t believe Rodrigue’s words. 

“If only you knew.” Dimitri whispered, facing his head towards the other side of the cell. 

Rodrigue smiled, trying to comfort him. “What you went through… I know I will never be able to understand it. But know this: I will stay by your side for the rest of my life to keep that torment and the ghosts that haunt you at bay.”

Byleth was concerned now. The topic of Dimitri’s ghosts was a dangerous move. Dimitri truly believed that the ghosts that followed him were real, and the prince would do whatever he said if they ask it of him. For Rodrigue to bring them up so casually… Byleth was prepared to pull Rodrigue out of the room if Dimitri snapped.

But Dimitri didn’t move. If anything, his eyes widened and he appeared more tense, but nothing else. 

“I promise you, Dimitri.” Rodrigue continued. “I will show you that you are more valiant than you realize.”

Dimitri still didn’t look at Rodrigue, who seemed to finish his piece. Sitting back down on his stool, Rodrigue continued to flip through his notes.

“Rodrigue…”

Rodrigue seemed surpsied Dimitri continued. 

“Thank you… For everything.” 

This interaction gave Byleth hope.

***  
“I’m sorry… Sha-What?”

Hilda looked just as confused as her attempt at pronunciation implied. Once Dedue had a few days to settle, he finally was ready to reveal the information he and his Duscur men learned while away. For now, he was only telling this information to a select few members of the army, including Byleth, Felix, Claude, Hilda, Rodrigue, and Seteth. Dedue warned that the smaller the amount of people that knew at first, the better. So Byleth insured to let only a few members of the army to learn what he had to say.

“Shambhala.” Dedue corrected. “Those who slither in the dark, I believe you call them? It is their stronghold.”

“How did you come across this information?” Rodrigue asked.

“It was about a few months ago, I believe.” Dedue began. “While trying to look for his Highness, we learned that Cornelia would occasionally leave the Kingdom Capital to a nondisclosed location. I thought that perhaps she was holding his Highness hostage there, so we decided to track her to where she was heading.”

Felix scoffed next to them. Byleth wanted to hit him; he probably was thinking Dedue was worthless for not figuring out that Dimitri was being held in the Kingdom the whole time. But how could he have known? Cornelia kept that secret well hidden. How could anyone expect that she would hide him in such risky place?

“It took some time, but we followed her to Hrym, in Imperial territory. And amongst the mountains, we found it.” Dedue sighed. “We didn’t actually enter the fortress but… It was unlike anything I have ever seen. How these people are so advanced is beyond me. I knew if we entered, we wouldn’t stand a chance.”

Dedue made eye contact with Byleth. “Shortly after, I found out about the Professor’s whereabouts here. I decided that if we wanted the best chance at saving his Highness, we would join forces with this army. Little did I know you had Dimitri the entire time…”

Hearing Dedue say Dimitri’s name was unexpected. 

“Even though they don’t have the prince, taking them out would prove beneficial to us, I believe.” Dedue suggested. “These people have shown what they are capable of. Taking out their main fortress would cripple them.”

Claude placed his hand on his chin. “I couldn’t agree more, as risky as it is.” He claimed. “If they are truly advanced as you say, it could be dangerous to ambush them. But if we succeed…”

“Who knows what technology they have there.” Seteth intervened. “Those javelins of light Edelgard used on us when we tried to save Rhea… That was surly advanced. They could have more of them there.”

Seteth brought up a good point. If they take out Shambhala, the odds of those javelins of light being used against them would significantly decrease.

The more Byleth thought about it, the better the idea seemed. Those who slither in the dark were powerful allied to Edelgard, taking them out would only improve their chances of winning the war. They were to threatening to let this opportunity to slip by.

Not to mention they are the ones responsible for what happened to Dimitri. They are the ones that experimented on Dimitri, Lysithea, and Edelgard. If they are capable of committing such atrocities, who knows what else they could be up to. 

“Then I think I have come to my decision.” Claude rose from his seat. “Dedue, I can’t thank you enough for this information. As perilous as the situation may be, taking out Shambhala would only benefit us in the long run. As long as there are no objections, I wish to proceed with the plan to attack as quickly as possible.”

No one objected.

But little did they know what would occur when they would storm Shambhala.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We stan Dedue and Rodrigue for not only being the best bros/dads, but also for being smart AF.
> 
> I have a good portion of the next chapter done. However, all that is left to write is fight scenes, which are SO HARD. But I will keep working on it! I hope to have the next chapter done relatively soon. So in the meantime, prepare yourselves!


	21. Shambhala

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE KEEP VOTING FOR DIMITRI K THANKS.
> 
> KEEP HIM AT NUMBER 1 BEST BOY DESERVES IT.

Byleth prepped themselves as they stepped into the Shambhala base.

They ignored how advanced the technology within it was. They ignored the worried glances the army gave as they walked deeper down into the fortress. They had a plan, and they would see it through.

Those who slither in the dark had to be destroyed.

Figuring out the best course of action took some time, especially considering they had no idea what Shambhala’s layout was beforehand. But there were some things that they knew. First and foremost, they had to kill Thales. He was the most likely leader of those who slither in the dark, so taking him out would make the organization much weaker. Thales had to be here; this was essentially his fortress after all. And second, they had to insure everyone in their army got out alive.

They would never grow used to not having their Divine Pulse.

As they went deeper into the fortress, Byleth began thinking of Dedue. He had requested to stay out of this fight, wishing to stay with Dimitri and better situate his Duscur men at Garreg Mach. Granting him that request was easy; not only was he making Dimitri calmer but he would give Sylvain some company. But part of Byleth wished he was here, he was a man of few words, but when he did speak, he always knew what to say. Byleth could really use his guidance right now.

As they scaled more of the stairs, breathing became harder. They were really going deep underground, weren’t they?

No mages had attacked the army until they reached the bottom floor. The enemies’ forms were illuminated by the glow from the ground and walls; it was unlike anything Byleth had ever seen. But they didn’t let that distract them. As soon as they saw the first enemy, they wasted no time trying to cut down as many of these mages as possible.

They were the ones responsible for the experiments on Lysithea and Dimitri, so Byleth would give them no mercy.

Trying to keep the Ashen Demon part of them at bay, Byleth took the time to look around the fortress. Thales would most likely be hidden deeper within. The enemies attacking them now were probably only the first line of defense. Surely, there would be more powerful enemies as they made their way further down the long halls.

Just as Byleth suspected, as they cut through more enemies, the real threat emerged. The Titanus creatures that Cornelia used in the Kingdom where here as well, and they seemed just as powerful as they were then. If Byleth recalled correctly, they were under the control of someone else, another powerful mage most likely. If they could take out whoever was controlling them, they would be much easier to take down.

As Byleth ran through the halls on their search, they came across Annette, who had the same idea. Teaming up, the two ran through the halls, magic spells and swords flying through the air as they defeated any mages that stood in their way. Despite their powerful magic and other abilities, the enemies they faced were not very strong defensively, which worked out great for them. Annette was especially thriving, being able to take out multiple enemies with a single spell within the tight halls.

Despite Annette being able to use the tight spaces to her advantage, the halls of Shambhala were also not kind to them. The mages had set up strong doors that couldn’t be taken out with sheer strength, so keys were required. Thankfully, the mages that held those keys were not far behind, but slowing them down did not make things easier. As they fought their ways through the halls, Byleth could hear the rumbling and fighting other members of the army were going through beyond the walls. They had to find the mage controlling these Titanus fast.

Eventually, Byleth and Annette found the mage they believed they were looking for. The female mage had quick assassins protecting her, but Byleth was not about to let them get in their way. Byleth used their Levin sword to quickly cut at them, and if they missed, they would use a thunder spell to catch them off guard. And if that didn’t work, Annette would easily take them out with a spell of her own. It wasn’t long before the mage was cornered by the two. With Byleth’s quick slices forcing her to act on the defensive, Annette eventually was able to hit the mage with a powerful spell, taking out the main source of power for the Titanus.

With the Titanus now crippled, Byleth had less to worry about, but now they had to focus on finding Thales. With Annette at their side, Byleth tried their best to navigate the halls of the fortress, fighting other enemies along the way. As they ran, Felix and Rodrigue eventually met up with them, the former seeming relieved at finding the two. 

At long last, Byleth finally managed to find the center of the stronghold. The room was large and full of Titanus, and in the center of that was another room with thick walls. If Thales was anywhere, he would be there. Wasting no time, Byleth tried to take out the Titanus with the other’s help. It became easier once other members of the army arrived.

However, things quickly became overwhelming. Now that they had made it to the center, everyone, enemy or not, had begun to gather there. The fighting was everywhere they turned and it was intense. It was hard to focus with everything going on.

“Professor!” Annette called out. “You get into the center; we can handle this!”

“I’ll join you, Byleth.” Rodrigue quickly offered. Byleth knew deep down that he wanted to kill Thales just as bad as they did.

Felix looked to Annette, affirming that she was handling things on her own. “I will go as well.” Felix responded right after. 

Looking around, Byleth saw that really those two were the only good choice for this task. The three of them were easily the closest to the center fortress, with everyone else either being distracted by enemies or further away. Nodding, affirming themselves that this was the right choice, Byleth scaled the steps to the door leading to the center room. 

Quickly checking to make sure Rodrigue and Felix were behind them, Byleth wasted no time taking opening the door door and entering Shambhala’s center stronghold.

They were going to kill Thales if it was the last thing they did.

Except… He wasn’t there.

Entering the room slowly with their weapons drawn, it was completely empty. There was a short staircase in the middle of the room which would have been the sure place Thales would have stood, but he was not there. 

“He… He isn’t here.” Rodrigue stated.

Felix rolled his eyes at his father’s obvious statement. “We aren’t blind, old man.”

Byleth looked around puzzled. This was those who slither in the dark’s stronghold, was it not? Thales was practically guaranteed to be here. Where was he?

Byleth noticed a noise behind them, but by the time they did, it was too late. A magic spell had hit all of them, it being so strong that all three of them screamed in pain. They fell to the floor, paralyzed by the magic that had them all gasping for breath.

Byleth trembled as they laid on the ground. How could one magic attack be so powerful?

“It seems Thales overestimated you lot.” A deep voice said. “To fall for such an obvious trap is foolish.”

Emerging from the shadows was a man who wore a tall mage’s hat and an outfit covered in feathers. His hand cackled a dark electricity, proving him to be the one that casted the spell. “Bohr X is impressive, is it not? One flick of my wrist leaves you all clinging to life.”

Byleth gagged as they drew for breath. They turned to face Felix and Rodrigue, who were both struggling as well. Felix had somehow managed to get onto his hands and knees. But before he could go any further, another female mage with a cloth covering her face picked him up by his hair, causing him to grunt in pain. 

“Myson, your always so slow to play with our prey. I would rather just get to the fun part.” The woman laughed. Despite being a magic user, she was strong enough to lift Felix high off the ground. Felix trashed against her, gripping on to his hair to try and prevent as much pain as he could, but he must have not had the energy to fight back too much from the magic attack. “You’re a feisty one, aren’t you? You should be fun to play with.”

“Screw you.” Felix breathed through his teeth. 

“I don’t think you’re in any position to threaten me.” The woman warned. She grabbed a hold of Felix’s face, her sharp nails digging into his cheeks, drawing blood. Byleth noticed Rodrigue attempted to get up to protect his son, but another figure immerged, forcing him back to the ground by stepping on his back. Byleth was surprised that he didn’t somehow break Rodrigue’s back, granted he was wearing heavy armor. 

“I agree with Bias, Myson.” The armored figure said. “Can’t we have our fun now?”

“Calm yourselves,” the mage, Myson, stated. “Shambhala is under attack and you are worried about having fun? Their reinforcements could be right around the corner.”

“Oh, come on.” Bias wined. “You, Odesse, and Cornelia got to have most of the fun with that prince. We want our share too.”

Byleth began to tremble with anger now as they tried to get up. “Y-you. You’re the one that hurt Dimitri?”

Myson glared at Byleth as they attempted to get up. Quickly, he went and kicked them in the stomach, forcing them back to the ground with a cry. “You mean that monster? I had my hand in it, yes.”

Byleth tried to stand again, fighting against the pain. That admission was all they needed. They were going to kill him. 

Attempting to stand again, Byleth got onto their hands and knees, but were quickly forced back down when Myson stepped on their hand, surely breaking some of their fingers. Byleth tried to bite back the screams, but some still escaped their mouth.

“You really are a fool.” Myson sneered. “Shame, the feral prince always spoke so highly of you in his time with us. He always held out hope that you would save him. Seems he was delusional with that thought.”

“Don’t you dare speak of the prince that way!” Rodrigue snarled.

Before Rodrigue could say anything else, the armored knight brought his foot down upon Rodrigue’s left leg. The snap of his bones echoed through the room, bouncing off the legs louder than Rodrigue’s screams.

“Apparently being foolish is a trend among your army.” Myson’s eyes looked over to Felix, who was trying to fight against the grip Bias still had a hold of on his hair. 

Byleth tried to stay silent despite Myson’s foot digging further into their hand. “How is the prince doing, by the way? It seems he didn’t kill you like we wished.” He sniffed the air. “It seems he did cripple you, however.”

Byleth’s eyes widened. Did he know about their loss of their Divine Pulse?

“You-You dastards tormented him!” Byleth growled.

Myson laughed now. “Oh, and we relished it, my love.” He mocked, bending down to their level. “I’ll admit, I didn’t know how much we would be able to when he first arrived. He was so resistant. But don’t worry, we managed to break his spirit swiftly.”

Myson was mechanically laughing now. “Oh goodness! I wish you could have been there to witness it! The things did to him, the things we made him do! He suffered through every moment of it, but he didn’t have a choice but to comply.”

Byleth heard Felix struggling behind them. “He was practically Cornelia’s little pet! Did whatever she said, that feral beast.”

Bias cleared her throat. “Come now Myson, you said we couldn’t have fun, and here you are having so much of it.” She chuckled. “I didn’t get to have as much fun with the boar prince as Myson, but I had a fair share. You should have seen the look on his face when I-“

“Hush, Bias.” The armored knight said. “They will get to experience first-hand what we did to him once we get them to Thales.”

“Right you are, Chilon.” Bias exclaimed. Byleth turned to look at her. Felix’s hair was being pulled out of his bun from how tight she was gripping it. “Shambhala is practically dead to us now. Thales took our most important subject with him to the Capital. We no longer have a use for it. Myson dear, why don’t you stop blabbering and get the portal up-“

Bias’s scream stopped her talking. Byleth noticed how Felix quickly released his hand from his hair and brought his knee up, allowing him to get to the dagger in his boot while the mage was distracted. Activating his Crest of Fraldarius, he used the dagger to cut through his hair, leaving Bias with most of his hair, but freeing himself. The Crest activation was so strong it also managed to slice through Bias’s arm, decapitating it. 

Felix was free, struggling still from the magic attack Myson casted on them, but free. As Bias continued to scream, he focused his attention on Myson, who just narrowly avoided getting sliced through the chest by Felix’s dagger. This allowed Byleth to get up, who mustered up all of the black magic they had in their body and aimed it at the knight holding down Rodrigue. The critical hit thunder sent the knight flying across the room, killing him instantly. 

Felix was not giving Myson a chance to breathe. He kept attempting to attack him at close range, not even allowing him to summon a magic spell again. Eventually, Myson managed to force Felix back by firing another dark spell at the ground, allowing for some distance between the two. Before Felix had the chance to attack again, Myson was kneeling on the ground, a dark purple spell activating below him that was all too familiar to Byleth. He vanished the next instant.

“MYSON!” Bias screamed as she cradled herself on the floor, gripping her severed arm. “HOW DARE YOU. HOW DARE YOU LEAVE ME BEHIND YOU-“

Byleth tried to ignore her.

Their broken hand trembling, Byleth tried to get that out of their head as they ran to Rodrigue, trying to help him. “Felix, we have to leave now!” Byleth knew the glow of that purple spell. It was the same one that sent those Javelins of Light down on them at Varley, the ones that killed Rhea.

Felix thankfully listened as he tried to help Rodrigue up as well. His once long hair was now short and unevenly cut, strands of it getting into his eyes. But he paid no attention to it and tried to-

The fortress began to collapse. 

As the first Javelin of Light made contact with Shambhala, pieces of the underground fortress fell towards them, Felix and Byleth just barely being able to dodge just as they had Rodrigue’s arms around their shoulders. Large boulders that fell silenced Bias’s screams, likely killing her.

When the dust from the first explosion faded, Byleth got back up, looking around. Felix was just nearby, but Rodrigue…

Byleth panicked, looking around for the Shield of Faerghus, they eventually spotted his dark hair…

With half of his body being crushed by a piece of the building.

Byleth gasped as they ran to him, Felix following suit. Felix actually made it to him first, and immediately tried to lift the huge boulder off of Rodrigue. The piece of the building had surly crushed his entire lower half, legs and all. Byleth tried to help as well, but it would not budge.

“No… stop.” Rodrigue managed to choke. “You… You can’t-“

“Shut up, old man!” Felix yelled as he tried to lift the debris, his Crest activating constantly, but not even that would make it budge.

“Felix…”

“I said SHUT UP!” Felix eventually fell to his knees, the adrenaline he used to fight back Bias and Myson waring off. He clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white, Byleth taking notice as they bent down to comfort him. Byleth knew their attempts were fruitless.

“Oh Felix…” Rodrigue coughed, blood dripping from the side of his lip. “You’re hair…”

“Who gives a damn about my hair?” Felix snarled. Byleth knew he was lying. They recalled Rodrigue mentioning at one point that it was a tradition of sorts for Fraldarius men to grow out their hair. As much as Felix seemed not to care about such traditions, Byleth could tell it bothered him. “Why don’t you just worry about yourself for once!”

“Felix, you know that is pointless.” Rodrigue breathed. “There’s… there’s no saving me.”

Felix clenched his teeth furiously. “So what? You’re just going to give me the Duke of Fraldarius title early then? When I am so unprepared? You’re just going to leave all your unfinished business to me?!”

Felix banged his hand against the floor. “Damn you!” His voice cracked. “Damn you for everything!”

Rodrigue inhaled sharply, chuckling slightly. “You sound just like Glenn.”

Felix gasped as he rose his head to face Rodrigue. Byleth noticed the faintest gleam in his eyes. 

“Felix… I am sorry. I am sorry for everything.” Rodrigue coughed. “I… I wasn’t the best father to you, especially after Glenn… I am glad you had people like Sylvain and Ingrid, and found people like Byleth and Annette.”

Felix scoffed. “Don’t you dare think I am going to forgive you just for being on your deathbed.”

“I don’t expect that.” Rodrigue’s eyes were growing weak. “But… I had to get it off my chest.”

Rodrigue turned his head. “Byleth please… I need you to do me a favor.”

Byleth listened, a frown forming on their face. “Dimitri… please. Tell him I am sorry I wasn’t there to help him recover from what was done to him. Please… Please, be the light to guide him back. Guide him back to fighting to what he believes in.”

Byleth sniffled. “I will.”

Rodrigue huffed as a loud noise rang from outside of Shambhala. “Now go!” He mustered the rest of his strength to push Felix and Byleth away from him. “Get everyone else out of here… And please… win this damn war.”

Byleth tried to offer a nod as they stood, grabbing Felix by the arm, signaling him to go. Felix quickly got up, the two of them running despite their pain as the remaining Javelins of Light came down.

The rest of the army barely managed to escape before Shambhala was destroyed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can I get a F.


	22. scars that we can't erase

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the 100+ kudos :3

First Rhea, now Rodrigue.

Byleth was supposed to save everyone. With the combined forced of the Alliance and Kingdom, loosing anyone should have been impossible. But here they were, losing two valued members of their army. And to make matters worse, the fall of Shambhala was not without dozens of causalities on their side.

The moment they left from the ruins of Shambhala without Rodrigue, Annette was cradling Felix in her arms, tears flowing from her eyes. She ran her fingers through his now short hair, twirling her fingers through the short locks. Felix tried to hide the fact that he was tearing up by burying his face into her shoulder. 

The track back to Garreg Mach was slow and full of dread. Shambhala was gone, that should have been reason to celebrate. But with the death of Rodrigue and Myson’s claim that they took their most important subject with them, no one having a clue as to what it could be, it was hard to consider their victory a win.

When they returned to the monastery, Byleth watched as Sylvain greeted them. He took one look at Felix and knew that something went terribly wrong. He took Felix off with Annette to comfort him, with Ingrid following suit shortly after.

Mercedes healed Byleth’s hand on the way back, but they still held it as if it was still in pain. New scars from Myson’s boot were present on their knuckles to their wrist, and their fingers were not used to bending normally again. 

But they couldn’t focus on their hand. As if Rodrigue’s death wasn’t hard enough to comprehend, they could only imagine how Dimitri was doing. 

Even in his mentally unstable state, Dimitri showed his love for Rodrigue. The man had been with him through every tragedy Dimitri went through, and now, he was no longer here. This would happen right after Dimitri was showing signs of healing. 

Byleth didn’t want to go to Dimitri’s cell. They didn’t want to see him in the potential state he was in. But they knew they had to be there for him. 

By the time Byleth had the courage to go to Dimitri’s cell, it was already nightfall. When they looked to the entrance to Dimitri’s room, they noticed Dedue standing just outside it. That couldn’t be a good sign, Dedue never left his side ever since his arrival. For him to be out here…

Byleth offered a small smile to greet Dedue. “Professor,” Dedue bowed. “I am glad to see you made it back safety. I… I am sorry, about Sir Rodrigue.”

Byleth met his gaze. “Dimitri, does he know-?”

As if on queue, there was a loud scream coming from Dimitri’s cell, followed by a bang. Byleth flinched at the sound, but Dedue didn’t budge, growing used to it some time ago.

“Felix came and informed him shortly after you all returned.” Dedue sighed. Byleth only now noticed how tired the man looked. “As I am sure you can tell, he is not taking it well.”

Byleth wanted to cry at this. When Dedue arrived, they saw the first glimmer of hope rise within Dimitri since they rescued him. For once, he seemed to be complainant. But now with Rodrigue’s death… Byleth feared they were back to square one.

“Professor… I’m sorry.” Dedue didn’t look at them.

Byleth gripped Dedue’s hand. “You don’t need to apologize. If anything, I should be thanking you, for taking care of him while we were gone.”

“But listen to him now-“

“It’s alright Dedue.” Byleth shut their eyes. “You didn’t cause this.”

Letting go of Dedue’s hand, Byleth tried to smile. Dedue looked exhausted. “Why don’t you go to bed? It’s late, I am sure you haven’t received much sleep since you arrived.”

“But then who will watch his Highness?” Dedue protested.

“I will.” Dedue looked like he wanted to protest, but Byleth stopped him before he could. “I am fine, Dedue. Please, let me do this for you.”

Dedue stepped back, sighing. He knew he didn’t have much of a choice. “Very well.” He paused. Byleth could tell he didn’t want to leave, but he truly needed the rest. “Please, just wake me if you need assistance. I’ll be in my room.”

Byleth nodded a Dedue walked away.

Sighing, Byleth turned to look at Dimitri’s door. 

Byleth didn’t want to enter. They didn’t want to see Dimitri in the state he likely was in. But they couldn’t leave him alone like that.

Slowly, Byleth opened the large metal door, the damage done being immediately apparent. The small amount of furniture in Dimitri’s cell was in taters, pieces flown across the cell like a tornado went through. The only thing that remained mostly intact was his bed, but even that had signs of damage. There were splinters all over the cell, what furniture it once was being completely unrecognizable now.

And then there was Dimitri. Truthfully, he didn’t look much better than the furniture. His hair was a mess from the trashing he likely did. He trembled with anger or sadness, which one Byleth didn’t know. He sat with his back against the wall of the cell, one knee up with his arm resting upon it. His knuckles were white from the tension going through them.

“What do you want?” Were his first words to them, intense. Byleth made eye contact with him; his eye was full of agony. 

Byleth looked at him mournfully, trying not to stare at the fragments of his cell. “I wanted to see how you were holding up.”

Dimitri huffed out a laugh. “I don’t care for your pity.” He scoffed.

They tried to calm him. “You’re grieving. We all are, but everyone else has someone to mourn with. I don’t want you to be alone.”

Dimitri stood up, his legs trembling. “I am suited fine alone.”

“Dimitri-“

“I don’t want you here!” He went up to the magical seal, banging his fists on it with the activation of his crest. “I’d rather be alone than you join me. So leave-“

Dimitri inhaled sharply as he swallowed. Stepping away from the seal, Dimitri stumbled to the brick wall of the cell. He placed his arm on the wall before he began to vomit onto the floor. 

Byleth didn’t call out his name, but they watched him carefully. Dimitri had only recently begun to eat willingly again when Dedue came back. Now all that progress was being vomited back out onto the cell floor. They wished they could be on the other side of the cell, keeping their hand on his back as he vomited from the grief. But they weren’t.

When Dimitri finished, he took his other, trembling hand to wipe his face. But he remained in place. “Just…” he struggled to speak as if more vomit was caught in his throat. “Just leave…”

Part of Byleth debating on leaving. Seeing him like this was nearly unbearable. But they couldn’t leave him alone.

“Dimitri please, just let me be here for you.” They begged him.

“I don’t want you here.” Dimitri repeated, more calmly this time. He almost sounded like he was giving up. “You weren’t there for me before, during those five years you were gone. I’ll be fine again on my own.”

Dimitri’s breath sounded harsh. Byleth hoped that the vomit wasn’t a sign that he caught another fever. 

Byleth studied his body as he held himself against the wall. The shallow rise and fall of his boney shoulders looked weak. His legs still shook from his own weight, despite there being little of it. The arm that was resting on the wall seemed to shake from the tension building against it. 

Just looking at him… They couldn’t stay silent any longer.

“Dimitri, I don’t know the details of what those who slither in the dark did to you.” Dimitri turned his head to look at Byleth ever so slightly. “I… I don’t even want to imagine what they could have done. Just looking at you… seeing the aftermath of what they did…”

As Byleth spoke, Dimitri remained silent. Slowly, he moved himself off the wall and sat down on the floor close by. He looked down at the ground, not at Byleth, but they kept talking. 

“I… I try to convince myself that you’ll be okay… But seeing you like this…” They trailed off, their eyes filling with tears. Were they going to far? Were their words making Dimitri more traumatized? If they did, Dimitri didn’t show it. “I want to help you Dimitri. I want to help you so bad… But you won’t let me in.”

Dimitri still didn’t look at them. “Dimitri, I will always be here for you. I can promise you that. You take all the time you need to reach back out to me. I will be here.”

Byleth felt like they were repeating themselves.

“Dimitri, I heard you talking to Rodrigue about your eye.” They feared that if they admitted to him that they were listening in on his conversation, he would be angry. But Dimitri didn’t move. “I know you care. I know you have the ability to reach out, to ask for help. Rodrigue isn’t here to do it anymore, so let me.”

Byleth didn’t notice how close they were to the bars until they felt their hands run against the seal.

Byleth shut their eyes. “Please, Dimitri.” They begged. “I want to help you. But I can’t reach out my hand to you if you don’t reach back. When I saw you reach out to Rodrigue about your eye, I saw hope within you. Despite what Cornelia’s forces did to your eye, you asked for help. Please… I know I can never erase your scars, but let me help you.”

Byleth wiped one tear away from their eye. They felt like they had done everything they could. All they could do now was hope Dimitri would reach out.

But he stayed silent. 

Byleth turned around, running their hands though their hair. They breathed, trying to relax themselves, trying to prevent other tears from falling. 

“They didn’t do this to me.”

Byleth turned back around to face him. Dimitri still hadn’t moved from his spot, but he was staring at the ground with a terrified look in his eye. He seemed traumatized by his own words.

As painful as it was to see that look on his face, this look of fear, it was the first, non-angry, non-tear-filled sentence Dimitri said to them since he was rescued. And that was enough of a reason for them to ask him further about the situation.

“They didn’t?” Byleth asked concerned. “Then… Then who? What…?”

Dimitri didn’t look like he was about answer, but his breathing intensified. He clearly regretted what he said and didn’t want say anything else. 

But Byleth couldn’t let it end like this. He couldn’t leave Dimitri here alone after Rodridge’s death. Dimitri wouldn’t have said such an ominous phrase if he didn’t want to keep talking to them, or anyone for that matter. 

But still, Dimitri didn’t look like he wanted to speak. Byleth didn’t want to end up in another panic induced state, but this time was… different than the others. He seemed willing to speak.

As risky as it was, Byleth lowered the magical seal and opened the cell door, Dimitri flinching at the sound. Closing the door behind them, Byleth stepped around the damaged ruins of his room carefully until they made it to Dimitri, kneeling down beside him. 

They adjusted themselves on the floor, sitting on their legs. Dimitri did not protest, which Byleth was grateful for. Despite Dimitri not looking at them, Byleth took all of this as a good sign. He didn’t lash out at them, didn’t become panicked, they were getting somewhere.

“Dimitri, you can tell me what happened.” They were careful with their words. They would not send Dimitri spiraling; they couldn’t bear to see him like that again. But they had to get him to talk, no matter what it took.

Dimitri didn’t talk at first. He just continued to stare at the floor. His breathing was steady, Byleth took note. For a brief moment, Byleth debated placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, but they didn’t want to risk spooking him.

“Dimitri, you can tell me anything.” Byleth assured him. If Dimitri hadn’t grown so much over these past few years, it would have been just like when they were teacher and student back at the academy. 

“I can’t tell you this.” Dimitri insisted through scared breaths. “If… If I do… they’ll… they’ll h-hurt me.”

Byleth knew who Dimitri was referring to without him needing to say. He really thought that his ghosts would harm him over whatever he wanted to say. 

“They won’t.” Byleth assured him, and they meant it. “I will not let them hurt you, Dimitri.”

Dimitri didn’t speak for several minutes. For a long while, Byleth believed he wouldn’t say anything. But the look on his face… he was clearly thinking it over.

Dimitri inhaled sharply, tears beginning to fall from his face. He wasn’t panicking, at least not yet, but he clearly was scared for what he wanted to say. “If I tell you what happened… You’ll think I am a monster.”

Byleth shook his head. “I would never think that of you Dimitri. You are no monster in my eyes, and nothing will ever change that, I promise.”

Dimitri shut his eye.

“I did this.”

Byleth separated their lips, but they didn’t say anything.

“A-After I escaped my execution, the ghosts didn’t leave me alone.” Dimitri trembled as he spoke. “I-I managed to deal with it for as long as I could. I was complaint with what they were saying. I was determined to avenge them, to bring them her head as they commanded.”

Dimitri sniffled loudly. “But after a while… It was hard to bear. They yelled at me, cursed at me! They continued to say how weak and worthless I was. Even after I killed every Empire soldier to invade Garreg Mach, it was never enough. Not for them.”

He wiped his eye, but the attempt was futile as more tears fell. “I… I just wished they would go away, leave me alone! But every time I plead for it, they would only grow louder, I couldn’t even hear my own voice over the screams in my head. When I walked the halls of Garreg Mach, searching for more people to kill and please them, all I saw were their bloody ghosts wandering the place.”

Byleth wanted to grip his hand.

“One day… I just couldn’t take it anymore. I wished I didn’t have to see them anymore. So… I took a dagger, and gouged my own eye out.”

He was weeping now. He was ashamed for what he was saying.

“It… It hurt so bad!” He placed his hands on his face, trying to hide his sadness. “But I kept doing it! I would do anything so long that it meant I didn’t have to see them ever again.”

“Eventually I passed out from the pain.” He managed to speak through his weeps. “When I awoke, they were still there, calling me a monster, a feral beast for doing that to myself. I knew then that I would never be rid of them. From that moment on, I did nothing but complied to them.”

He let out a weak chuckle. “And now here I am, admitting that I betrayed them, that I wished them to be gone from my life forever. Surely they will yell harsher things at me tonight.”

Byleth wanted to say something, but Dimitri kept talking.

“When… When I was captured by Cornelia’s forces…” He swallowed. “Truthfully? I relished in the moments they tortured me. Every time they broke my bones, healing them only to break them again. Every time they reopened old wounds, including the eye injuries I caused to myself. When they deprived me of basic needs. When they experimented on me despite my constant pleas for them to stop. When they took away everything that made me a living, breathing person and degraded me to nothing more an animal… Nothing more than some shell of a man that was only there to be their toy to torment. A man, no, monster, that they took everything from… I cherished every moment of it. Because at least when they did that, I couldn’t hear the ghosts.

“When they would stop, the ghosts would torment me again. Call me weak for screaming as loud as I did. Laugh at how they took away every human right I once had. And then they would go right back to demanding her head.”

Byleth let Dimitri sob. “I realize now I can never cease their pleas. I can’t save them, not anymore. If I ever do bring them her head, it would never be enough. And there is nothing I can do.”

Byleth couldn’t find the words. Dimitri had told them everything. It was information they longed for ever since they found him and yet… it only brought Byleth sorrow. To now fully know the extent of what Dimitri went through… There were no words to describe it.

But they would comfort him.

“Dimitri… I envy you.” Dimitri looked at them, ceasing his sobs. “Until I came to the monastery, I could feel nothing. Nothing at all. The only thing I cared about was making it out of whatever situation I was in alive. I didn’t care about my allies, my father… Only myself. I could only wonder what it was like to feel: to be happy, to hate, to love…”

They smiled. “But… but then I met you, Dimitri. You were everything I wasn’t. You… you felt so much, but not for yourself. You feel so much for others. You… You put everyone before yourself. You love everyone so much…”

Tears began to fall from Byleth’s face now. “You care so much for others, even the dead. You only wish to make everyone happy, even if it costs you your happiness. Dimitri… you bared what your tormentors did to you against all odds. _You survived_. And it was all for them.”

Byleth couldn’t help themselves now. They gripped his hands, holding them gently within their own. “Your ability to love… it saved you.”

“But Dimitri…” Byleth brought his hands closer to their face. “You need to learn to love yourself too. You are worth it Dimitri. You have atoned for what you have done. You don’t deserve anything your captors did to you. You don’t deserve to be tormented by the ghosts of your past, your love for them should have been enough. It wasn’t your fault what happened to them, to Dedue, to the Kingdom, to me… Dimitri…”

They looked at him right in the eye. “Dimitri… When I look at you, I don’t see a monster. I don’t see a weak man. I don’t think any less of you. You are filled with so much care, so much love… It’s about time you started living for the love you stand for.”

Byleth smiled wider despite the tears falling down their face nearly as much as Dimitri’s once were. “Dimitri… It’s time to not be dictated your ghosts… It’s time to live for what you believe in.”

Dimitri stared at them for a moment. 

And stared

But then the tears began to fall. He sobbed, but it was different from before. There was no anger behind these sobs, no fear, no despair.

But relief.

Knowing this, Byleth pulled Dimitri into a hug, embracing him as their tears began to fall onto his back. Dimitri did not hug back, but he continued to weep his tears onto Byleth’s shoulder, soaking it.

“Byleth…” Dimitri said their name with love. “Oh Byleth… Byleth…”

“It’s okay Dimitri,” Byleth let their own tears fall. “Cry Dimitri, cry.”

Byleth cradled him, consoling him. Slowly, they began to run their fingers through his hair, taking note of how his body was no longer tense. Dimitri’s body was weak, but in the best possible way. For once, he was calm.

And Byleth knew he would be alright.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was the reason I decided to write this story. I have been looking forward to posting this for a long time, so I hope it was worth it :)
> 
> I have the next chapter already finished, but I will probably give this one awhile to settle before posting the next. Expect it not to long from now!  
> 


	23. Show Yourself

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am glad everyone seemed to enjoy the last chapter :)

Byleth was not sure how long Dimitri cried on their shoulder.

How long it took, Byleth didn’t care. For the first time in over five years, Dimitri was no longer tense. No longer fueled by anger or fear. He was Dimitri.

And how Byleth had waited for this moment. The moment when they could comfort him. When they could calm him and he would listen. When he would finally trust Byleth once more.

Eventually, Dimitri’s sobbing began to slow. He gave several sharp breaths, not being able to breathe properly through his sobs. Byleth had stopped crying some time ago, but they would wait until he was completely finished, no matter how long it took.

Finally, Dimitri raised his head from Byleth’s shoulder. His eye was puffy and red from crying. But for the first time, Dimitri seemed at peace.

Byleth kept their hands on his shoulder, smiling. He kept eye contact with them. Slowly, Byleth raised their hand, placing it on his cheek. 

They didn’t really know what to say after all of that. “Why don’t we get you to bed?” They suggested, keeping their smile.

Dimitri looked concerned. “Will… Will you stay with me?” He asked in a whisper. “I… I just want to make sure… that they won’t…”

Byleth kept their smile despite the pain they still felt in their chest. Byleth honestly doubted that Dimitri’s ghosts would ever go away, but that was okay. Byleth would ward them off for as long they continued to draw breath. Rodrigue no longer could, so they would in his place. They would ensure that Dimitri would still be able to live a peaceful life even if they were still haunting him. They wouldn’t hurt him ever again.

“Of course.” Was the only response Byleth could give.

Dimitri slowly nodded. “Then… I would like that.”

Nodding, Byleth rose slowly, and then offered their hand to Dimitri, helping him up. He reached out to take it, but he drew back. “I… I don’t want to hurt you…” He looked away. “My… my Crest…”

Byleth shook their head. “You won’t hurt me.” They said. “I trust you.”

Dimitri hesitated, but eventually he took Byleth’s hand.

When Dimitri was on his feet, Byleth began guiding him to his bed. His legs shook as they walked. “Watch your step,” they instructed him. The two of them began to walk around the destroyed furniture, carefully watching where their feet landed on the ground.

Eventually, they made it to Dimitri’s bed. Letting go of his hand, Byleth got to work clearing off whatever scraps from Dimitri’s earlier panic were gone. Once nothing but the mattress, pillow and thin blanket remained on his bed, Byleth motioned Dimitri to lay in it. 

Dimitri didn’t protest until he sat on the bed. “I’m sorry,” he said. “You should have the bed. I would offer to share it with you, but I fear what harm I may cause you in your sleep. Here, I will-“

Byleth stopped him. “You need it more than I do,” they smiled. “I will be fine, don’t worry. I had to sleep in a lot of weird places and positions as a mercenary, I can sleep anywhere.”

Lowering to the floor, Byleth cleared up a small area for them. They planned to sleep sitting up, resting their arms and head on the bed, allowing Dimitri access to them if he needed it. “I’ll be just fine like this.” They assured him.

Dimitri looked concerned, but complied. Slowly, he made his way under the covers of his bed, turning on his side to face Byleth. They gripped his hand as he laid there, staring at them. Dimitri’s eyes flashed around the room, looking slightly frantic. He was looking for his ghosts, planning to harm him for saying what he did, Byleth believed.

“Don’t worry, Dimitri,” they spoke softly. “I won’t let them hurt you, just get some rest.”

Byleth figured Dimitri didn’t get much sleep at all since he arrived here. His ghosts or nightmares about what he had to go through probably wouldn’t let him. But tonight, Dimitri would get some sleep, Byleth would ensure it.

“Okay.” Was all Dimitri could say.

It took a while. Dimitri didn’t shut his eye for some time. But eventually, his lid closed. Byleth could tell he wasn’t asleep yet, however. But after some time, Byleth finally heard his soft snores.

They smiled before drifting off to sleep themselves, still comforting Dimitri by gripping his hand.

***  
Dimitri didn’t stay asleep for long.

Granted, it was the best sleep he had in years, but it wasn’t long enough. His ghosts wouldn’t let them.

He knew that they wouldn’t simply go away. Byleth managed to silence them for a little while, but they were never going to leave, and Dimitri knew that. But ever since what happened… When he admitted to what happened, when he wept uncontrollably, when Byleth comforted him… Listening to their screams was easier.

But it didn’t stop their yells. Even now, the voices were screaming at him. They demanded that Dimitri kill Byleth for treating him like a human, for telling him to abandon his ghosts, for giving him mercy.

But Dimitri could bare it.

And perhaps over time the voices would learn that he wasn’t their pawn anymore.

They must have noticed his shifting, because not long after he awoke, Byleth too opened their eyes. Byleth made eye contact with him before reaching out for his hand. Dimitri hesitated, but he eventually complied, letting Byleth rub their fingers along his knuckles. 

“I didn’t sleep for long.” He admitted. He couldn’t lie to them. “They wouldn’t let me.”

Dimitri expected Byleth to be angry, furious for continuing to let the voices torment him. But they didn’t. “That’s ok,” they said with a smile.

Their smile made everything easier.

They stayed there for a while. Everything that happened before they went to sleep was late into the night, the sun was just beginning to peer out now. 

“Would you like some tea?” Byleth suggested. “I can make you some, if you would like.”

Dimitri nodded.

Byleth stood up and moved to the cell door, opening it slowly. Dimitri sat up on his bed, fearing that they would leave him alone. But they didn’t. Instead, they opened the door leading out of the room and called for someone, a servant, he believed. He heard Byleth request the ingredients required for the tea before they heard the servant scurry off to go gather what they needed.

Byleth returned to the cell without shutting the door. They sat down on the bed next to him, sitting with their legs crossed. “They’ll just be a moment,” they told him.

It really didn’t take too long before the servant came back. The woman looked around the cell with wide eyes, taken aback by the state of it. Dimitri felt embarrassed for making the cell the state it was in. 

But the servant did not dwell on it too long. Entering the cell, she stepped over the scattered objects around the room, eventually making it to the bed. Byleth took the tea pot, cups, and other necessary items from the maid before instructing her to remain close by outside of the room.

Byleth brewed the tea quickly, pouring a cup for themselves and him. “Chamomile is still your favorite, isn’t it?”

Dimitri nodded. Really it didn’t matter too much. He still could not taste anything, but he always had a fondness for chamomile tea. Perhaps it was the smell, or maybe it was the way it tended to calm him, but it was anything but the taste that deemed it his favorite.

Taking the cup gently, Dimitri took a sip as did Byleth. He placed the cup on his lap, holding it firmly in his hands as he watched his former professor continue to drink. Byleth always looked so happy whenever they had tea with their students, and right now was no exception. They looked beautiful as they sipped the hot liquid…

**_“Why aren’t you bring us her head?”_ **

Dimitri flinched, activating his Crest and shattering the tea cup in his hands. He managed to be quick enough and not let the boiling water spill onto his lap, but the shards of glass from the cup and the hot water against his hands was not forgiving.

But Dimitri didn’t think about that. They had broken Byleth’s cup, and he felt terrible.

“I’m sorry…” He whimpered, hands trembling from the pain. “I’m so sorry. I’m-“

Byleth placed their hand on his leg. “It’s alright Dimitri,” they said with a slight smile. “It’s just a cup, nothing to worry about.”

They rubbed his leg, comforting him, smiling at him. He didn’t deserve it.

“I am going to call the maid, okay? Get someone to help heal this,” Byleth suggested.

Dimitri nodded slowly. “Okay.”

Byleth called for the maid, who came into the room quickly. “Can you go find a healer for us please? Whoever is available will do.”

The maid nodded before leaving.

Byleth went to reach for his hands. “Here, Dimitri,” they gripped them, being careful not to touch the shards of glass imbedded in his hands. “Just relax, it’s okay.”

It took a little longer than he would have liked for a healer to arrive, but when the cleric finally did, he understood why.

“Hello Professor,” Mercedes said with a smile, ignoring the state of the cell. “Hello Dimitri.”

He exhaled. Mercedes probably heard that Byleth had calmed him and rushed to the room to see for herself. 

“Mercie, can you help heal Dimitri for me?” Byleth asked her.

“Of course.” The cleric said with a smile. Mercedes was always so kind, too kind even. She didn’t seem phased by anything. She didn’t question what happened to Dimitri’s hands, she didn’t try to pressure him for anything. She just did as she was told.

“Professor, can you pull out the shards of glass so I can heal them right away?” Mercedes asked. 

Byleth nodded before turning back to Dimitri. “Is that okay Dimitri? I’m sorry, it won’t be pleasant for a while, but Mercie will do her best to heal them right away.”

Dimitri nodded before Byleth gripped his hands tightly, preparing him for the pain he would feel. Quickly as they could, Byleth pulled out the first shard, causing Dimitri to flinch from the pain, but he stayed steady. Byleth continued to apologize with every shard they pulled out, but really, they didn’t have to. Mercedes healed the wound as soon as Byleth pulled the shards out, barely giving the wound time to bleed. There was pain for a little while, but it quickly subsided. 

Once she was done, Mercedes continued to heal the remaining burns on Dimitri’s hands, and then smiled at her work. “All done!” She said happily.

Byleth let go of Dimitri’s hands. “Thanks, Mercie. Would you mind doing me one other favor?” The cleric nodded. “Can you ask the maids to clean the cell? I think I am going to take Dimitri to the baths while they clean.”

“Is that okay, Dimitri?” They asked him.

Dimitri appreciated how Byleth always checked with him for everything. He nodded in response.

Mercedes smiled. “I’ll ask them personally.”

The cleric turned to leave the room, but Dimitri knew he couldn’t just let her go like that. “Mercedes?”

She turned to face him. Dimitri breathed, preparing himself for what he was about to say. “Thank you… For healing me. For everything.”

She looked teary eyed at his words, bowing. “It was no problem, Dimitri.”

Once she left the room, Byleth turned to Dimitri, continuing to rub their hand on his leg. “I’m sorry,” they said. “I… I should have asked you about the baths ahead of time. I just figured you’d want to get out of this cell for a little bit.”

Dimitri shook his head. Honestly, he could love to take a bath. He really hadn’t taken on in years. He knew that he was washed down sometime in between being rescued and when he woke up, but he hadn’t had an actual bath in a long time. “No, that’s alright. But are you sure it would be alright if I left here?”

“I know that you’ll be fine, so everyone else shouldn’t have a problem once they see you with me.” Byleth retorted. 

Dimitri didn’t have much more time to argue, because the maids showed up quickly after that. He heard Byleth quietly request one of them to bring fresh clothes for the both of them to the baths before they stepped out of the cell, motioning for Dimitri to follow.

Dimitri’s breathing heightened as he approached the exit of the cell. He hadn’t been out of one in… awhile. He didn’t know how he would handle it. His whole world for a while was just a small cell he could hardly stand in, and it was only recently upgraded to the larger, but still small, cell at Garreg Mach. Would he panic again when he left the comfort of it?

Whether or not he would, he didn’t care. Byleth’s smile as they waited for him to follow was too much to ignore. 

Taking small, slow steps, Dimitri stepped out of the cell. Byleth offered their hand to him, which he took, before they left to go to the baths. 

Garreg Mach was much bigger than he remembered. The halls were long, the stairs were numerous. But it was hard to focus on the monastery when nearly every person they passed just… stared at the two. Byleth didn’t seem to mind, and when they did see some give them a glare, they only gripped Dimitri’s hand tighter. But Dimitri wasn’t as strong willed as Byleth was, he only wanted to hide with each stare he received. But he supposed after his behavior before, he couldn’t blame them. He was just thankful he didn’t run into any of his former classmates on the trip.

It felt like an eternity before they finally made it to the baths. Byleth lead Dimitri into the changing room as they quickly began to remove their clothes for the baths.

For Dimitri, however, it was not that simple. He would have thought that after everything he had gone through, stripping himself of his clothes would have been easy. But it wasn’t. He would no longer be able to hide the countless scars he gained. He wouldn’t be able to hide the injuries that never healed right. They would be showing Byleth everything. And he was terrified of it.

Dimitri looked to Byleth, who was nearly naked now. Their body was also lined with scars, which was not surprising considering their mercenary upbringing. But their scars weren’t like his. Their scars were… beautiful. His however, were not so.

“Dimitri, I know you’re hesitant.” Byleth said without even turning to face him. “But it’s alright. I won’t say anything.”

Dimitri whimpered. 

Byleth breathed. “I promise.”

Dimitri huffed. If they insisted.

He was slow in removing his clothes, but eventually, he too was naked. Dimitri felt ashamed as he looked at his body, seeing the countless scars he was afraid of showing. He didn’t even recall receiving half of them, but there were some that bad him quiver at just the sight of them. 

Dimitri didn’t want to face them. He didn’t want them to see everything. He didn’t want them to see his naked form, not being able to hide anything from them.

But eventually, he turned around. Byleth was naked now as well, their body made more beautiful when compared to his vile one. But Byleth’s quick glances at his body were brief and then they only looked at his face, offering the slightest, sympathetic smile. Taking his hand in theirs, Byleth guided Dimitri to the bath.

The tub was large and steaming from the warm temperature. It was larger than Dimitri remembered, the entire tub taking up the majority of the room. He normally hated the heat, growing to use to the cold temperatures of Faerghus, but this warmth felt nice. Byleth was the first to step in, taking a few steps in before guiding Dimitri into follow. When they sat, Byleth was submerged to their shoulders, Dimitri, being taller, was submerged to his pectorals.

Dimitri looked down at the water nervously, expecting the filth covering his body to run off and dirty the water. But he didn’t see any. He debated grabbing some soap to clean off his body or hair, but decided against it.

Byleth sat close to Dimitri, but they didn’t invade his space. They mostly just sat there, relaxing, which Dimitri wished he could do as well. But it was hard to do that. He had a lot running through his mind, and now they were in the silent bathhouse, it was hard to silence those thoughts.

Finally, he decided to break the silence. “Byleth…”

“It’s okay, Dimitri. You don’t need to say anything.” Byleth insisted.

“But… I can’t stay silent!” Dimitri raised his voice. “How can I not say anything? After everything that happened…”

The heat from the bath was rushing into his face, making him lightheaded. He stood up, letting the bath water drip off of his body as he stared down at Byleth. They looked at him with saddened eyes.

“Then, what do you wish to say?” Byleth asked.

Dimitri scoffed. “I don’t know.” 

“I don’t need you to tell me anything more than you already have, if that is what you are worried about.” Byleth stated. “I am not going to pry.”

“But… How can you just ignore it all?” Dimitri asked them. “My behavior, my hair, my scars… I have borne it all to you, either from last night to this very moment, and you just pay no mind to it? I… I hurt you, Byleth.”

Byleth stared at them, frowning slightly. “You weren’t in your right state of mind. How can I hold that against you?”

“I may not have known what I was doing, but I am still the one that caused you harm.” Dimitri looked away.

Byleth pressed their lips together. Slowly, they turned around, grabbing cleaner for the hair. “Come here, let me wash your hair.”

Dimitri huffed with frustration, annoyed that they were avoiding this response. But Dimitri listened, sitting back down with his back to Byleth. He didn’t really want them touching their hair, the very symbol of what those mages did to him, but they knew there was no use arguing. Gently, Byleth began to rub his scalp, cleaning off the filth in his hair. The massaging on his head felt good.

“I never blamed you, not once.” Byleth said as they continued to clean his hair. “So you shouldn’t feel the need to blame yourself either.”

Dimitri grunted. Below the water, he clenched his fists.

Once Byleth finished, they informed him that they were going to rinse out the soap. Preparing himself, Dimitri shut his eyes, feeling the heat of the water pour on his head shortly after. He could feel his soaked hair stick to his face. Taking his hand out of the water, he pushed his hair out of his face and opened his eyes once more. 

Dimitri flinched when Byleth placed a hand on his shoulder, right over the scars running across it. Despite his recoil, Byleth did not remove their hand. Dimitri felt the slow movement of their fingers trace along the scars, as if memorizing their texture. He hated showing his scars to them, but he let them continue. 

He remembered when he received those scars. When his tormentors muzzled him. Tied his arms behind his back. Suspended him feet off the ground, dislocating his shoulders, only to lower him when he showed signs of going into shock. When they added weights to his ankles, making the pain even more unbearable. The moment when he finally heard his shoulder crack from the tension…

Dimitri tried not to seem phased by Byleth’s touch. But he hated those scars.

Eventually, Byleth recoiled their hand. “I’m sorry,” they apologized. 

Dimitri bit his lip. “It’s fine.” His voice quivered. He huffed at his display of weakness.

He heard Byleth hesitate from behind him. “I know I said I wouldn’t ask anything, so you don’t need to answer, but…” They paused. Dimitri turned his head just enough to look at them. “Does… Does it still hurt? Anything, I mean.”

Dimitri closed his eyes. Most of his injuries were nothing more than scars now. But there were a few exceptions. “Occasionally, but nothing to fret over.”

Dimitri’s eyes widened when Byleth hugged him from behind, their arms wrapping around his shoulders and meeting at his chest. Their face dug into his shoulder, their forehead resting upon it.

Dimitri hated receiving pity. And he was getting too much of it recently. From the moment he was taking out of Fhirdiad, pity was something he received from every single one of his comrades. 

But when Byleth hugged him, when Byleth calmed him, it was all different. He never felt like he was receiving pity. He only felt like he was being comforted. And he was thankful for that.

“Byleth…” He blinked away the new tears forming in his eyes. “Thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title for this chapter comes from the song “Show Yourself” from Frozen 2. It is such a good song. It has always made me think of Dimileth (especially when it is a duet).
> 
> We are going to be in slow recovery city for awhile, so expect more chapters like this in the future. But don’t fret, the angst is far from over ;)


	24. Embrace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made some more edits to old chapters. Mostly just grammar fixes (again, apologize for that) and I did omit one paragraph for future uses :3 if you remember what it was, congrats you have a preview lul.

Dimitri’s eye struggled to adjust to the blinding sun as they stepped out of the bathhouse. But he was fine with having to deal with it. The bath helped him feel clean for the first time in five years, and truthfully, it was the first time in a while he felt normal. 

Byleth’s hand was intertwined with his as they stepped out of the bathhouse. Their hands were pruned from the water, but he didn’t mind. They were both dressed in more casual clothes, with Dimitri wearing an all-black outfit consisting of a long-sleeved shirt and black pants. Byleth wore a similar lounge outfit that the maids supplied them. 

Dimitri wished that he could stay by their side like this forever. Despite all that he did to them, they always were happy to comfort him when he needed it. Dimitri could never find the words to say to thank them for all that they did.

However, they could not stay by each other for long, as waiting for them outside the bathhouse was a messenger. Byleth instructed Dimitri to wait by the door while they went and spoke to person waiting for them. 

Dimitri’s heart raced as Byleth continued to speak to the messenger. He could not hear what they were saying, so he feared that they were discussing him. He hoped that they weren’t.

Messenger bowed to Byleth before he ran off. Just as he left, Byleth made their way back over to Dimitri. 

“Your cell is clean,” they smiled. But there was something else lurking behind it, and Dimitri could tell.

“What else?” He asked. 

Byleth frowned, rubbing their hand behind their head. He saw their fingers run through their still wet hair. “Is it okay if we go see Claude?” They finally asked. “Word travels fast, it seems. He wishes to speak to you.”

Dimitri opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. He was still not used to the idea of the Kingdom and Alliance teaming up. He was thankful for it, of course, and he never had one problem with Claude in school. But knowing that Claude was essentially the master tactician behind the whole army… The thought of going to see him was terrifying. 

Dimitri inhaled. They just couldn’t say no to Byleth. “Okay.” He agreed.

Byleth’s smile returned before they grabbed Dimitri’s hand again, leading him to where ever Claude was. This walk was not as forgiving as the first. He spotted Felix and Sylvain talking just outside of the training grounds, and they both stared as the two walked past. Dimitri did his best to not make eye contact with them, and it seemed to work since they didn’t try to approach. 

Thankfully, Dimitri didn’t spot any of his other former classmates on the rest of the trip to the council room. 

The door was shut when they arrived. Byleth looked to Dimitri one last time, waiting for his approval once more. Dimitri nodded at them before they opened the door.

Claude was alone, thankfully, but his presence was so demanding the room might as well been full of people. Claude sat at the head of the table, his head resting on his intertwined hands, but he didn’t remain there for long. When he saw Dimitri and Byleth walk in, he immediately stood from his seat and made his way over to them. 

“Dimitri,” Claude spoke with a grin. Dimitri was surprised that he didn’t refer to him by one of the many nicknames he had come up with during their schooling together. But judging by the way he was walking; Claude was being careful not to set Dimitri off. “Am I glad to see you.”

Claude extended his hand slowly. Dimitri stared at it for a few moments before turning to receive Byleth’s approval. Their former professor nodded, still gripping his other hand. Dimitri extended the other, meeting Claude’s gently. “Claude.” Was all Dimitri had to say.

Claude kept his smile as their hands separated. “Sorry to call you in here so suddenly, especially right after your bath,” Dimitri noticed Claude wink at this comment. “But I would like to speak, if that is alright with you.”

Dimitri took this moment to survey Claude. This was his first time really getting a good look at the Duke of House Riegan since they last saw each other five years ago. The other times they saw each other, Dimitri was fueled by fear or rage. Claude definitely was still him, but he had grown quite a bit; he even managed to start growing a beard. 

“If I didn’t agree to it, I wouldn’t be here,” Dimitri said honestly.

Claude must have thought this was a joke, because he laughed. “Of course, of course!” He laughed. “Here, why don’t you take a seat.”

Dimitri complied, sitting down towards the end of the large council table. Byleth sat right next to him, their hand running over the top of his leg briefly before ceasing contact. Claude sat at the end of the table, in the seat diagonal from Dimitri.

“This may be a dumb question,” Claude positioned himself comfortably in his chair. “But how are you holding up? I am sorry about Rodrigue, I know how close you two were.”

Dimitri thought it wasn’t that dumb of a question. Claude was probably shocked that Byleth trusted he was well enough to be let out of his cell. But then again, Claude surely knew Rodrigue’s death would affect him…

But Dimitri didn’t want to think about Rodrigue. Dimitri was still waiting for Rodrigue’s ghost to show up and torment him at any moment now.

“I’m okay, I suppose.” Dimitri felt Byleth’s hand grip his tighter. He wanted to return the favor, but he feared that if he did, his crest would activate and he would harm them again.

Claude gave a small smile. “That is good to hear.” He looked down at the table. “Well first and foremost, if you ever need anything, I will be here. Not that I think you’ll need me with Byleth around, but just in case.”

Dimitri appreciated Claude. The two weren’t exactly the closest of friends at the monastery, given they were in different classes, but they spoke to each other from time to time. Dimitri never had a problem with Claude; despite his constant scheming, Dimitri knew Claude was a good person with good intentions. Dimitri was glad it seemed that even after all this time, he wasn’t wrong in thinking that. 

“I appreciate it.” Dimitri tried his best to give a slight smile, although he didn’t think it turned out that well.

Regardless, Claude smiled back and nodded. “I don’t know if Byleth told you on the way here, but the reason I called you here was to fill you in on what’s going on.” Claude informed him. “I want to make sure you know our status and future plans.”

Claude filled him in on pretty much everything that had happened up until this point. Finding Byleth. Teaming up with the Blue Lions. Finding him… Rhea’s death. The Great Bridge. Gronder. Shambhala. Rodrigue…

And the whole time, Byleth gripped his hand. Dimitri knew they were probably worried about him, worried that it was too much for him to handle. But he would be fine. He needed to know what had happened.

“Our next course of action is to take Fort Merceus.” Claude continued. Dimitri remembered hearing of this fort before. It was commonly referred to at the Impregnable Fortress, if he recalled correctly. “We plan to head out there at the end of the month, give our army time to recover after Shambhala.”

“And what of me?” Dimitri knew he wasn’t about to go join them on the battlefield. Byleth surely wouldn’t allow it. And honestly, Dimitri didn’t think he had it in him to go fight…

“Sylvain is staying here, since he still is having trouble fighting.” Claude pressed his lips together. “And, despite his protests, Felix will remain here as well. I can’t have him go onto the battlefield after what happened to his father. He needs more time to mourn and recuperate.”

Dimitri didn’t know how to feel about that. He hardly had it in him to face Mercedes when she came to heal him. Facing his close former friends was a whole other matter. And by the sound of it, Byleth would be going to fight, leaving him behind…

No, he couldn’t think like that. He wouldn’t hold Byleth back. If they wished to fight, he would let them. He couldn’t depend on them. He would be fine without them.

“Once we take Fort Merceus, Enbarr will be next.” Claude was bold in his statement. “But for now, we won’t worry about that. Not until we take the Fort.”

“What’s your plan for me?” Dimitri was so used to being useful or being used, he was expecting something to come of him.

Byleth gripped his hand tighter. “You just focus on recovering.” They told him. “You don’t have to worry about going to battle or your responsibilities as heir of the Kingdom. We can take care of it.”

“Most of Fodlan still thinks you are dead.” Claude said this as if Dimitri didn’t already know. “For now, we will keep it that way. Once this war is over, we will worry about the Kingdom. But for now, it is handled.”

Dimitri hated feeling useless, but it seemed he wasn’t going to be given an opportunity to contribute. 

“But that is pretty much everything.” Claude repositioned himself. “Now that you are all filled in, please do as Byleth said. Focus on your recovery, we will handle the rest.”

Byleth smiled at him. “I’ll make sure to stay with him,” they told the schemer. 

Claude nodded. “Well then, for now, is there anything else you need?” Claude asked. “I doubt you want to return to your cell, so would you like your old room back? No one is occupying it-“

“No.” Dimitri covered his mouth, shocked at how fast he said it. He hated the very idea of going back to his old room. The memories that filled it… he wouldn’t be able to bare it.

Byleth looked to Dimitri before looking back at Claude. “Actually, would it be possible for him to stay with me? Can we move a spare mattress into my room for him?”

Dimitri was surprised at Byleth’s boldness.

Claude grinned, winking at Dimitri once more. Why did he keep doing that? “I’ll get some people on it right away.”

***  
This was the first time Dimitri had been in Byleth’s room.

Despite being the same size as his, the room felt so much more welcoming. It was so warm and comforting… Dimitri would be lying if he said he didn’t appreciate the fact that he could stay here now.

Byleth told Dimitri to stay on their bed until they got his situated. He didn’t stay for long, however, as they had to do some rearranging once they brought in the other bed frame. Byleth’s bed now sat right next to the shelves that were home to Byleth’s many books, with the head of the bed now up against the left wall. Dimitri’s bedhead sat on the same wall, but on the other side of the room. The space between them was reasonable, but close enough just in case.

Once they had finished setting up the bed, Byleth immediately began putting on fresh sheets and pillows onto it. In a few short minutes, everything was done. 

When Byleth had finished, they wiped the sweat off of their forehead. Despite Claude having others set up the bed, Byleth had done most of the work. By the looks of it, they really wanted to make sure everything was perfect for Dimitri and brought it upon themselves to do just that. 

Byleth turned around and sat on the bed next to him. They didn’t say anything for a time. “I’m sorry, about that meeting.” They finally said.

“It’s alright.” Dimitri told them. It really was. “I’m… glad he trusts me enough to tell me everything. Even if I’m not playing any role in battle, he doesn’t seem to care. I… I can apricate that, at least.”

Byleth smiled. “But still, I am sure it was overwhelming.” They looked away. “And… I’m sorry, that I am going to Fort Merceus.”

Dimitri looked at them. 

“I… I want to stay with you, I do. But… at Gronder, I found out… Something.” They paused. “Something from Edelgard.”

Her name rang in Dimitri’s ears. The ghosts in his head started to yell profusely. 

But regardless, Dimitri tried to push on. “What did you learn?”

Byleth made eye contact. “Supposedly, she didn’t know about you.” They looked away. “I think those who slither in the dark did it on their own. I don’t think she had anything to do with it. She thought you were dead… I hate to ask you this, but do you think it could be true?”

**_“That witch knew everything!”_**

Dimitri blinked away his ghosts and tried to think rationally. “She never came to visit me, from what I recall. I suppose it could be possible she did while I was unconscious at one point. But… I think if she did, it would have been mentioned at least.”

Truthfully Dimitri wanted to believe Edelgard didn’t know. 

Byleth nodded. “I see.” They ran their fingers along the bed. “But that is why I need to go. I can’t let any other students die fighting for something they don’t know the full extent of. Regardless of what side they chose in this war, I knew them once. I hate having to cut them down.”

Byleth looked mournful.

They sighed. “I can ask Claude if Dedue can stay here too, if that would make you feel better?”

Dimitri considered it. Dedue probably would say that he wanted to stay by Dimitri’s side. But… Dimitri knew how Dedue must be feeling after Shambhala. He probably blamed himself for what happened. He probably thought that if he was there, he could have prevented the tragedies that took place.

Dedue knew Dimitri would protest. “I am your vassal; I will remain here.” He would probably say. But Dimitri couldn’t hold Dedue back. He may protest, Dimitri was honestly shocked that it seemed he didn’t object to going to battle. But Dimitri knew that in the end, going onto the battlefield, fighting for his cause… In the end, it would benefit Dedue in the long run.

As much as Dedue would probably object, Dimitri knew he had to go. If anything was going to ease Dedue’s mind about Shambhala, it would be going to For Merceus.

“No, let him go.” Dimitri told Byleth. “He will protest, but the army needs more capable fighters.”

It wasn’t exactly a good summary for the analysis Dimitri just did in his head, but it was something. With Felix and Sylvain out of the battle, what he said was true; the army needed Dedue’s strength. He just hoped Byleth didn’t notice him thinking it through and would question if that was the only reason.

Thankfully, Byleth didn’t. “Alright… I don’t know how much he will like that, but he’ll listen to you.”

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Apologizing as they stood, Byleth went to it and opened the door. Not wanting intrude, Dimitri looked away.

Byleth returned to his side rather quickly. “Sorry, but today is about to get a little more overwhelming.” They said.

Guiding him off of the bed by gripping his hands, Byleth led him to the door.

Dimitri wasn’t expecting to see almost all of the Blue Lions waiting outside.

Quickly doing a headcount, the only one absent was Felix, which Dimitri didn’t think was too much of a surprise. But aside from him, everyone was there. They all just… stared in awe at Dimitri, which made him uncomfortable, something Byleth must have noticed since they gripped his hand tighter.

Eventually, their looks of awe subsided. Flayn was the first to step forward. Byleth released Dimitri’s hand as she did.

She didn’t say anything at first. She just stared at Dimitri; her eyebrows knitted together.

Then, she hugged him.

She was still so short. It didn’t look like she had aged a day since the academy. But it seemed her kindhearted spirit didn’t change. “Dimitri…” She said as she hugged him. Eventually, she pulled away, giving him the biggest smile. “Welcome back.”

She hugged him again despite Dimitri being taken aback by the words. Eventually, the rest of the Blue Lions joined her, wrapping Dimitri in one big group hug. The only one that didn’t join was Dedue, who simply watched the group carefully, most likely making sure that Dimitri would panic from the contact. Byleth also did not join in, probably worried that he would be too overwhelmed.

But he wasn’t. He did not hug back, worried he would hurt them. But truthfully, he was happy. He was happy to be accepted by his friends once more. After everything that happened, he didn’t think he deserved it. But here they were, accepting him back with open arms regardless.

Dimitri blinked away the tears as he fought the urge to hug them back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just… love the Blue Lions so much…


	25. Conceal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *looks at upcoming valentines banner in FEH*
> 
> so... Dimitri alt??? :3

Byleth should have been thankful that it took this long for Dimitri to have a nightmare, but it didn’t make the eventuality any easier. 

Really, Byleth had only spent two nights with Dimitri now, the first being in his cell, the second occurring right now. Byleth guess that they just expected him to have a nightmare every night, but since he didn’t the first day, they thought maybe he would be fine. But tonight proved that it was just wishful thinking. 

Dimitri’s screams were bloodcurdling, so loud that Byleth jumped up, thinking that the monastery was under attack. But then they looked to Dimitri, who was trashing violently in his sleep, clawing at his face, his major Crest of Blaidydd occasionally activating.

Byleth rushed to him, trying to wake him, but it was not so simple. They shook him, trying to avoid his trashes as his Crest activated. During one of its activations, Dimitri kicked his bedsheet so hard that it ripped in two, tiny, little strings from the sheet flying into the air as he did so.

But eventually, Dimitri awoke. His face was pale and had faint, red claw marks across his eye sockets and he was covered in sweat. He was heaving, and his eye searched around the room, making sure it was real, before he looked to Byleth. Tears were already streaming down his face.

“Dimitri, it’s alright,” they said with a soft smile. “It was just a nightmare, I’m here.”

Byleth could feel the entire bed shaking now from his trembles. “By-Byleth.” He stuttered, as if confirming that they were there. 

Byleth nodded. The look in Dimitri’s eye told them that he wasn’t entirely convinced. He eventually looked down to the ruined bed sheet, remaining silent as he did.

He shifted his body. His knees were now up and he rested his elbows on them, his back arching forward so he could place his hands in his eye sockets. “I’m sorry.” His voice shook through heavy sobs. “I’m sorry, Byleth.”

Byleth placed a hand on his back, rubbing it slowly in circular motions. “It’s alright.”

“I-I was back there.” Dimitri didn’t have to elaborate for Byleth to know what he was referring to. “T-they were hurting me again. They said this was all a trick. Byleth… it felt so real.”

“Shhh… it’s okay.” Byleth comforted him. “They aren’t here. You’re safe. All of this is real. I promise you.”

Part of them wanted to embrace him, but they didn’t want to startle him. So they just continued to rub his back, using it to gently remind him that they were there. 

Dimitri didn’t sob for too long, at least not as long as the other night. Eventually, his trembles ceased, and he slowly removed his hands from his face, revealing his still strained eye. “I-I’m sorry,” he said more clearly. 

“You don’t need to apologize.” He really didn’t. Byleth didn’t care if they received no more sleep for the rest of their lives. They would be here to comfort him when he needed, no matter what it took. 

Byleth continued to rub his back until they were sure he had calmed down. It was late in the night, but despite that Dimitri didn’t look tired at all. He probably made himself too awake from the nightmare.

Knowing that sleep wouldn’t come to him easily, Byleth decided to try something else. “Why don’t we go for a walk?” They suggested.

Dimitri flattened his lips before nodding.

Guiding him out of his bed, Byleth lead Dimitri to the door. Quickly handing him a pair of slippers, they got ready and went outside.

The chilly evening air made Byleth shiver, but they didn’t show it. They just continued to grip Dimitri’s hand, affirming that they were here. Byleth hated that he constantly had to prove to himself that this was real and not a trick. Byleth would do everything in their power to make sure that that fear went away.

The two walked down the path until they eventually made it to the greenhouse. Still feeling cold, but also wanting to get Dimitri out of the room, they thought it was a good middle ground. 

Motioning him to follow, Byleth lead Dimitri into the greenhouse and shut the door. The floral aroma was calming, and they hoped that Dimitri thought the same. 

Dimitri let go of their hand as he walked a few steps in front of them. “I’m surprised…” He commented. “It hasn’t changed much in here.”

Byleth looked around. They supposed they hadn’t noticed that. Amazing to think that even after this horrible war, the flowers bloomed like nothing happened.

“Good thing a lot of people here like gardening,” Byleth took their eyes off of Dimitri and stared at some blue flowers.

Byleth heard Dimitri hum in agreement. “I’m glad, I’ve always-“

Dimitri was cut off by the sudden coughing that filled his throat.

By the time Byleth turned to him, he had ceased coughing and was looking at his hand. Byleth walked over to him as he wiped his hand against his pants. “Are you alright?” Byleth asked, running their hand on his back.

Dimitri hummed again. “Sorry about that.”

Byleth sighed. They shouldn’t have brought him outside. His body was still fragile, he was probably catching a cold already. “Come on, let’s head back to the room.”

They couldn’t let him get sick again.

Byleth didn’t grab his hand to guide him this time and just started walking. They stopped when they realized he didn’t follow. Turning back to him, Byleth backtracked. “Dimitri-“

Byleth stopped when they realized Dimitri was not listening to them. The prince was looking down at something in the garden. As Byleth turned to see what he was looking at, Dimitri walked past them.

He bent down to a group of flowers that were in a variety of colors. Wanting to get a better look, Byleth squatted down next to him. Dimitri’s touch was gentle as he ran his fingers along the petals of a white flower. And…

Was that a smile they saw?

It was faint, but it was there. It was definitely the largest smile Dimitri has had since everything that happened. “Has Dedue been tending to the flowers?” He asked.

“Ever since he came back yes.” Practically any time Dedue wasn’t with Dimitri he was in the greenhouse.

Dimitri huffed out a laugh. “I can tell.” Slowly, he picked the white flower. “He’s the only one that knows of about these.”

“A favorite of yours?” Byleth asked. They didn’t know the first thing about flowers or gardening. The few times they did help Dedue in the greenhouse all they did was hand him tools that they had no idea how it functioned.

“My stepmother’s, actually.” Dimitri twirled the flower in his fingers, looking at it from every angle. “She used to tell me how she loved to garden in the Empire. However, as I am sure you can imagine, gardening isn’t as easy in the cold weather of Fhirdiad. These were the only ones she could ever get to bloom.”

A chuckle. A genuine chuckle left his lips. “She would say that they were like her love for me. They would tough out the freezing temperatures just to make me smile. I thought it was cheesy when she told me that, but I know she meant it.”

It seems that remained true, even today.

Dimitri stopped twirling the flower. His blank expression returned again before he stood up, Byleth following suit. “Byleth… Can I tell you something? So long as you promise not to tell anyone?”

Byleth blinked. “Of course.”

He nodded in thanks, taking in a deep breath. “I… I know we weren’t related by blood, but… I think of everyone I lost that day; I miss her the most.”

Byleth flattened out their lips before smiling at him. They wanted to tell him that that was alright, that it didn’t matter if they were related by blood. This wasn’t the first story about Dimitri’s stepmother that Byleth heard. But each story about her had one thing in common: Dimitri loved his stepmother, and she loved him. Their lack of a blood relation didn’t make anything different.

But Byleth stayed silent, not wanting to say the wrong thing. They just hoped their smile would be enough.

Apparently, it was, because Dimitri offered them a smile before placing the white flower behind their ear, letting it rest there. It was the closest Dimitri had gotten to actually touching them. Up until this point, it was always Byleth who would reach out to him, never the other way around.

The back of his hand only brushed up against them. He didn’t hold them like they hoped he would, but it was a start.

He smiled wider. “Sorry, but can we go back to bed? I’m growing tired…”

Byleth returned the smile as they ran their fingers gently along the white flower on their ear. “Of course.”

When Byleth turned around, Dimitri looked to his hand. He had to insure he wiped off all of the blood.

When he saw that he did, he followed.  
***  
The days leading up to Fort Merceus couldn’t have gone by quicker.

Each day was full of progress for Dimitri, but the scars he received during his time as prisoner were apparent. He still had nightmares every night, his ghosts forcing him awake screaming. There were a lot of things he still struggled with that any normal person wouldn’t even think about. 

Eating was difficult. When he had first woken up here, he didn’t want to eat. He had gone so long not eating that he didn’t want to. Now that he was feeling somewhat better, he actually wanted to eat, but it wasn’t pretty. He could only eat a little at a time, and when he did, he made a mess of it. He tried as hard as he could to not look like a feral animal eating, but it proved difficult.

In the few times where Byleth wasn’t by his side, Dedue stayed with him. As expected, he requested Dimitri to stay here instead of go to Fort Merceus, but Dimitri declined. Dimitri needed to prove that he would be fine without Dedue or Byleth by him every moment of the day.

His ghosts never left his side either, though their presence was not welcoming. They would curse at him, tell him he needed to bring them Edelgard’s head. They hated seeing him recover, as slow as it was. Dimitri admittedly had a hard time ignoring them, but Byleth and Dedue managed to chase them away.

Eventually, Rodrigue joined their ranks.

Dimitri didn’t take it well the day he did. It was a normal day when it happened. Dimitri was having lunch with Alois, Sylvain, Ingrid, Marianne, and Hilda, with Dedue not eating but watching. Alois was telling his terrible jokes, making Dimitri genuinely laugh. He was in the middle of eating Gautier cheese gratin when he heard the all too familiar voice. 

**_“How dare you act like nothing is wrong when you should be avenging me!”_**

The rest of what happened was a blur. He remembered hiding underneath a table, cowering with fear. He remembered shaking violently, pleading, _begging_ Rodrigue to stop. He remembered trying to push Marianne and Dedue away as they tried to comfort him. He remembered the painful surge of his major Crest of Blaidydd activating as he lost control…

The next thing he clearly remembered Byleth reaching under the table to comfort him, their small hand extended towards him. Eventually, they convinced him to come out and brought him to their room.

Byleth wrapped him in a thick blanket and brewed him some tea as they tried to get him to calm down. 

“It’s alright…” They cooed, rubbing their hand along his leg. “Everything will be alright…”

If only that were true.

But aside from that, Dimitri had shown progress of recovery, and it was in large part to his former classmates. 

The rest of the army had welcomed him with open arms, even ones outside of his class. Raphael was constantly asking him how he got so strong and asked for pointers. Lorenz would vent to him about the importance of nobility or his father from time to time. Dimitri was glad to finally catch up with Marianne, and was happy to see she had fought off her ghosts much better than he did. Linhardt would talk to him about Crests. Ashe would always ask how he was doing. Mercedes would offer to teach him how to sew again. They were just so welcoming.

Really the only two Dimitri didn’t have a chance to talk with where Felix and Lysithea. Felix was understandable, he supposed; the few times Dimitri would see him in the halls he would just scoff and leave. Lysithea was more of a mystery. She would say hi to him and maybe engage in small talk, but she was always so… distant. 

But regardless, Dimitri was glad he was welcomed. It made things easier to recover. It made ignoring his ghosts easier. 

When the day finally came for the army to head to Fort Merceus, Dimitri made sure to give all of his well wishes. Dedue still protested going, but eventually gave up and agreed to go. Dimitri hoped that the fight would ease Dedue’s guilt over Rodrigue.

He was talking to Annette when Byleth approached. Knowing their goodbye was important, Annette waved at Dimitri and left.

Byleth smiled before taking his hands in theirs. “I’ll be back before you know it.” They grinned. 

But Dimitri stayed silent. He didn’t want them to go. He wanted them to stay here.

“Do you… have to go?”

He didn’t even realize he said it until he saw Byleth knit their eyebrows together, as if regretful. Once Dimitri realized what he said, he whimpered. “I’m sorry.” He said. “I… I shoudn’t be asking such things of you.”

He wouldn’t hold them back.

Byleth looked down at their intertwined hands. “You don’t need to apologize.” If Dimitri had a bullion for every time Byleth told him those words… “You’ll be okay. Sylvain and Felix will take care of you. I promise.”

Dimitri lowered his head. When he did, Byleth cupped his cheek with their hand. “I’ll see you soon.” They smiled. 

Dimitri longed for that smile the moment they left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dimitri suffer :)
> 
> The flowers Dimitri’s stepmother grew are called English Primrose. I don’t know shit about flowers, but supposedly they are able to survive the harsh cold. Hopefully that is actually true lol. I’m not a florist, sorry. But if you wanted a visual as to what they look like, there you go.
> 
> So we have been in recovery fluff central for a while now. I am having a lot of fun writing it so I hope everyone is enjoying. We are getting back to the action soon, but not before one more chapter with some nice whump :)


	26. Mending

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as a warning, there is a flashback in this chapter that depicts torture. It is the large italic section in the middle of the chapter, if you would like to skip it.

Dimitri didn’t get any sleep the night Byleth left.

He was too afraid to go to sleep without them there. They knew it would be pointless, his ghosts would just wake him up repeatedly throughout the night anyway. So, there was no point in getting any sleep.

Dimitri never exactly had a great sleeping schedule. It started after Duscar, with night terrors and the urge to continue to train keeping him up at night. After the monastery fell, he stayed up in order to kill as many Empire soldiers as he could. When he was kept prisoner, the only time he really got any sleep was when his injuries forced him to. And now that he was free of that situation, night terrors plagued him again. 

He knew he would be able to stay up for at least a few nights, but now that he was finally starting to relax himself, his body would require sleep eventually. But for now, he tried not to focus on that. 

It was early the next morning when he heard a knock on the door, the sound being so loud it made him jump. Rising slowly to glance at Byleth’s empty bed, he walked to the door and opened it.

Felix did not look happy with him.

“What the hell are you doing?” He snarled. His short hair began to curl at the ends, bouncing as he shifted his body.

Dimitri glanced back into his room and was about to answer, but Felix wouldn’t allow him to. “Get yourself ready and into the training grounds. Don’t take forever.”

And then he left.

Dimitri squinted at him as he walked away. He didn’t really know why Felix would require him in the training grounds. Perhaps to give him pointers? No, he wouldn’t take advice from Dimitri. Maybe to assist with training Sylvain? He was still having difficulty fighting with his arm…

Dimitri shook the incoming negative thought from his mind and returned to his room, getting dressed swiftly. He still didn’t have any proper clothing, so he settled with the only thing he was provided with that would fit: a black, long sleeve and matching pants.

The walk to the training grounds was quick, but the look on Felix’s face said he took too long to get there. Sylvain quickly greeted Dimitri at the door, with a look that the prince knew meant bad news. 

“Dimitri, please just ignore him.” He said, putting his arm around Dimitri’s shoulder. 

“Don’t tell the Boar what to do, Sylvain.” Felix snarled, twirling a training sword in his hand. 

Eventually, Felix stopped twirling the sword and pointed it… straight at Dimitri.

It was only then when he caught on.

Dimitri shooed Sylvain away from him. “Felix, you don’t mean to tell me you wish to spare, do you?” He questioned.

Felix rolled his eyes. “Fight. Spare. No difference.”

Dimitri tried to look strong. “Felix, you know I can’t fight you,” he claimed. “You know about my Crest, I can’t control it. I can hurt you.”

“I can handle it.”

The look in Felix’s eye was full of anger.

But Dimitri couldn’t be deterred. “No, Felix.”

Dimitri knew what Felix wanted. He was angry. He was angry at him. He was angry at his father. He was probably even angry at himself. And when Felix was angry, he took it out on Dimitri. But Dimitri would not let him do it again, especially since he had the ability to hurt him now.

“Come on, Dimitri.” Sylvain insisted. He seemed defeated. Even after telling Dimitri to ignore Felix, Sylvain’s attempt failed. Sylvain turned Dimitri around towards the door. “Felix can-“

Before he could open the door, a dagger flew at it, the blade sticking into the wooden door. It was a training dagger, so it hardly managed to imbed itself in it. But the fact that the dagger was thrown in the first place was enough.

Turning around, Dimitri saw Felix didn’t even attempt to hide the fact that he threw it. The swordsman just continued to twirl his training sword, although he looked much more annoyed now. 

When Dimitri offered Felix a pleading expression, he only laughed. “Oh, quit your petty acting!” He yelled. He was furious now. “Just fight me already! Fight me like the Boar you are!”

Dimitri barely had time to move before Felix charged at him. His swing was so strong that his training sword got stuck in the wooden door, but Felix managed to pull it right back out. Dimitri had made it down into the open, but he didn’t go for the rack of weapons yet. If he could, he would avoid this fight.

“Felix that’s enough!” Sylvain yelled. Dimitri wanted to look to him for help, but he stopped when he remembered. He hurt Sylvain, crushed his arm with the power of his Crest. If what Dimitri heard was true, Sylvain couldn’t even hold a lance properly. He was in this brawl alone.

“Stay out of this!” Felix retorted. 

Dimitri held his hands up. “Felix… Please.”

“Shut up!” Felix charged at him again. Dimitri once again dodged, but Felix was too quick. He sliced at Dimitri again, this time the sword just narrowly missing his chest. Normally training swords were so dull they would have trouble cutting through clothing. But since Felix had activated his Crest with this slice, Dimitri’s shirt now had a reasonably large sized cut in it.

Dimitri knew there was no getting out of this now. He needed a weapon. He still refused to attack Felix, but he needed it at least to defend himself. Rolling backwards, dodging from another one of Felix’s swings, Dimitri grabbed the closest lance he could find. When he completed his roll, he held the lance up to block one of Felix’s swings, the two weapons ringing as they collided. 

For just a brief moment, Felix actually looked pleased. He probably was thinking it was about time, Dimitri believed. That pleased look quickly faded as Felix continued to clash his sword against Dimitri’s lance. Dimitri continued to stay on the defensive, continuing to block as Felix continued to attack. He would not hurt Felix. He would not risk fighting back.

But after a time, it proved to be difficult. Felix would not let up. Every time Sylvain would yell at Felix to stop, his swings would only grow stronger. 

What happened next was so quick Dimitri had a hard time believing it happened. As Felix’s sword made contact with the lance once more, Dimitri pushed the lance back, hoping to get Felix off of him. In this push, his major Crest of Blaidydd activated. Felix’s sword and his lance shattered from the activation, pieces of the weapons flying through the air. Felix stumbled back as Dimitri froze.

Shaking, Dimitri dropped the broken lance in his hands. The lance had split in half, but Dimitri felt no injuries on himself.

Dimitri then looked at Felix, who was still standing. He held onto his broken sword in a white knuckled grip as he looked down at the ground. Upon closer inspection, blood was dripping from Felix’s face. A piece of his broken sword had ricocheted onto his face and sliced open his cheek. 

Dimitri let out a whimper. He had hurt Felix. He had hurt Felix. He continued to shake violently as his ghosts yelled at him, calling him a monster. Rodrigue and Glenn’s voice screamed at him so loud his ears began to ring.

Dimitri stood up, his hands trembling. “Felix…” He stuttered. “I’m so sorry Felix. I’m so sorry-“

Felix had punched him before he could say anything else. Dimitri didn’t get back up from the ground, but he did look back up to Felix, who looked angrier than ever. Dimitri took the moment to examine the cut on his face. It was a shallow cut on his cheek, extending from his cheekbone to just above his lip. But he didn’t seem phased by the injury. The broken training sword was pointed at Dimitri’s chest, and if Sylvain wasn’t there to hold him back, he had no doubt that Felix would be trying to stab him with it right now. 

“Don’t you dare apologize to me!” Felix fought against Sylvain’s grip. His yelling only made Dimitri tremble further. “Just look at the pathetic state you’re in!”

“Felix enough!” Sylvain had managed to push Felix back, but Dimitri didn’t keep his eye off of him. 

Felix didn’t stop yelling despite Sylvain pushing him back. “Get that look off of your face! I can’t stand the sight of it.”

Felix must have noticed Dimitri was on the verge of tears. “Felix…” Dimitri’s voice cracked.

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” Felix threw his sword to the ground, the clang echoing through the training hall. “I used to see you as nothing more than a damn Boar. But ever since we brought you back from Fhirdiad, that Boar is nowhere to be found. All that’s left is this lowly creature in front of me!”

Sylvain tried to interfere again, but Felix ignored him. “First Glenn, now my father… They happily laid down their lives for you. I expected you to be angry, have that look in your eyes like you did after Duscur. I expected you to be that mad Boar after all of this! But-but…”

Dimitri didn’t notice it before, but Felix has tears in his eyes too.

Felix noticed this and shook his head. “The Boar within you is gone now.” Felix shut his eyes. “Whatever they did to you in Fhirdiad, they got rid of it.”

Felix didn’t say anything for a few moments. He only looked down at the ground, the blood from his cheek dripping off below. 

Sylvain stepped forward. “Felix-“

Felix let out a single chuckle. “I’m leaving.” Felix grunted. “I can’t stand to look at you any longer.”

And without another word, Felix left.

***  
Dimitri couldn’t keep his mind of off things.

After the fight with Felix, Sylvain brought Dimitri back to his room. But staying there only made him grow tired. So despite the late night sky telling him not to, he elected to go to the bathhouse to try and relax.

Being in the large tub without Byleth made him feel lonely. He tried to block out the fact that they were not there by keeping a damp washcloth over his face, blocking out his vision. But if Byleth were here, they would be comforting him in some way. So the washcloth didn’t work very well.

But Dimitri stayed in the tub. The warmth was able to relax him at least somewhat. 

The silence made him think of Cornelia, for some reason, which was odd considering things were never quiet when she was around. The room would always be filled with his screams or her mechanical laughter when she was present. Part of Dimitri supposed that he still thought all of this was fake, that he would hear her laughing at him any moment now. 

He didn’t wish to remember her. All she ever brought him was pain. But in the silence, he couldn’t quiet the memory.

_Dimitri’s head was pulled out of the water by his hair. His captors didn’t even give him the chance to draw breath before they threw him to the ground. He tried desperately to remove the water that filled his lungs, coughing and gagging as he tried to lift himself up. But he was so weak… he could barely push his body up._

_Once he slowed the coughing, his captors grabbed him again. Cornelia loved to make him suffer whenever she was here… surely, they would give him no time in between the various forms of torture for him to recuperate._

_His captors dragged him in between two poles. Taking harsh rope, they bound his wrists and had him dangle between them, positioned on his knees. He knew what was coming, but just as a reminder, his unseen torturer hit the whip against the ground, the loud sound making Dimitri jump._

_“Hold.” Cornelia’s voice said. Dimitri didn’t have the strength to keep his head up, so Cornelia forced it up for him. Her nails dug deeply into his cheeks._

_“Oh, my pet.” She rarely ever called him by his name. She would dehumanize him as much as she could. “I wish you didn’t have to make this so difficult.”_

_She let go of his cheeks. His head dropped and dangled. “I mean really, all that screaming you do? It really strains my ears.”_

_The whip made a loud sound again. “I said hold!” Cornelia yelled. She sighed. “You know this could all be so much simpler.”_

_Dimitri huffed. He only hoped he would lose consciousness before they began whipping him._

_Noticing his drifting, Cornelia grabbed him by the hair. It was still blonde at this point in time, but Cornelia had broken his spirit and will to fight back long ago “If you had just died in Duscur or on your execution day, you wouldn’t have to go through this.”_

_He shut his eyes but remained conscious._

_“Hump, suppose there’s no use fretting over it now.” Cornelia released his hair; his head went back to dangling. “Afterall, if you did die, I would be missing out on my fun, wouldn’t I?”_

_Cornelia stood back up, and Dimitri knew what was coming. Even though he tried to prep himself, he couldn’t stop himself from screaming as the whip came in contact with his back. The searing pain erupted with each whip, his back being nothing but tatters of skin by the end of it. It felt like it went on forever. And the whole time, Cornelia laughed, laughed as he begged for mercy…_

Dimitri removed the washcloth from his face. He couldn’t think about that, not now. Thinking about what happened would only cause him distress. 

Once he had finished washing himself, Dimitri removed himself from the bath and got dressed. He stepped outside the bathhouse; the chill of the wind more prominent from the contrast of the hot bath. 

As he made the track back to his room, he stopped when he heard commotion coming from inside of the training grounds. Looking briefly inside, he saw light shining through, showing that someone was in there. Figuring it was Felix, he decided to go in. Hopefully he would be able to clear up that mess with him.

But Felix wasn’t in the training grounds. It was Sylvain, and by the looks of it he was frustrated. Several training lances were laid across the floor as another one fell out of Sylvain’s hands. The red head cursed as it dropped.

Dimitri frowned. This was his fault.

Sylvain seemed to perk up once Dimitri entered the room. “Dimitri, hey.” He said as he began to pick up the lances on the ground. “How are you holding up?”

Dimitri walked towards him. His lips flattened. “I’ve seen Felix frustrated with me before, but never to that level.”

Sylvain nodded. “He’s just mad, don’t take it personal.” Sylvain placed a few lances back on the rack. “I know he never acted like it, but he really did care about Rodrigue. He needs someone to let his anger out on, it just so happened to be you.”

Dimitri looked away. He wished he could comfort Felix instead of be his enemy, but he didn’t know where to start. With Felix, he never knew. He could do one thing and Felix would completely twist it the other way around. He could never win with him. It’s always been that way ever since Glenn died.

“He’ll get over it.” Sylvain held onto one training lance. “I know it might be hard for you, but just ignore him for now. He doesn’t really mean anything he says.”

If only it were that simple.

Sylvain attempted to swing his lance once, and it quickly made its way to the ground. Sylvain cursed as he bent down to reach for it, but Dimitri beat him to it. As Dimitri picked up the lance, his face filled with sorrow. “I’m sorry…”

“Don’t even start.” Sylvain grabbed the lance from his hands and rose back up, Dimitri following suit. “You know I wouldn’t blame you for this.”

Dimitri knew this, but it didn’t make it any easier to watch.

Dimitri watched Sylvain attempt to swing his lance several times. He watched his body carefully, memorizing each of his movements. Part of him didn’t want to interfere, he still blamed himself for this, after all. For him to give advice when this was his fault to begin with? But he couldn’t stay silent.

“Sylvain.” When the red head turned to face him, Dimitri already began adjusting his lance’s position. “Try holding it like this… Yes, just like that.”

It was pretty different from how Sylvain normally wielded his lances. He raised an eyebrow at Dimitri, puzzled at why he would even suggest something like that. “Trust me.” Was all Dimitri could say.

Sylvain sighed, but seemed to comply. He began to swing his lance in the starting position Dimitri suggested. At first, the lance ended up on the ground just like the rest. But after a while, his swings became sturdier. Looking surprised, Sylvain quickly set up a training dummy and took a swing.

The cut was shallow, but this was the first time in months Sylvain had successfully hit his target without the lance falling to the floor or doing no damage. He gave a surprised laugh as he touched the slash, almost like he didn’t believe it was real. “Dimitri… How?” 

Dimitri huffed. “I have injuries that inhibit my ability to wield a lance as well.” Dimitri had received many extensive injuries over the years, even before he was imprisoned by Cornelia. But he had learned to deal with them. “It took time, but eventually I found a way around it. Your situation isn’t much different from what mine was.”

Sylvain seemed overjoyed. Quickly, he attempted to swing again, but Dimitri stopped him. “Don’t think you can just run into battle like it never happened again.” He warned. “It will take time to grow accustomed to his method of wielding, for your mind and body. You have to train both if you want to wield it like you used to again.”

Sylvain nodded, but he seemed hopeful. “I don’t care, this is the best progress I’ve made in months.” He held his lance how Dimitri informed him to again. But then he paused. “Dimitri… would you mind helping me train? If you don’t mind…”

It was the least Dimitri could do. “Of course.”

And they continued to train. Throughout the night, Sylvain had tried to thank Dimitri several times, but each time Dimitri shooed it away. He didn’t deserve his thanks. But hopefully, overtime, he would be able to atone for what he did to Sylvain.

The two were so caught up in their training that they didn’t realize Felix was watching at one point.

***  
Dimitri breathed heavily as he spared with Sylvain. He had made great progress throughout the night to the point that they were sparing with one another. Dimitri still watched Sylvain tumble a few times, but it was definitely progress. Until then, Dimitri suggested Sylvain take up more reason magic to account for his lance weakness, which Sylvain agreed to. But Dimitri would continue to help Sylvain train with a lance for as long as the red head required.

It was early morning now. The two didn’t even notice what time it was until the training grounds door opened again. The two stopped as Felix walked in, a frown sitting on his face. Felix was known to come into the training grounds every morning to start training early. He had a small bandage covering the cut on his cheek.

Dimitri expected more anger, but Felix rolled his eyes and huffed. “Really now? Training without me?”

Dimitri blinked. Sighing, Felix walked over to the weapons rack and picked up a training sword. “I thought I would at least get an invite.”

Felix positioned himself ready, but this was different from before. He wasn’t tense or ready to pounce like he was before. And Dimitri and Sylvain took notice of that. Sylvain gave a weak smile. But Dimitri was not as confident.

“Felix-“

“Don’t.” Felix stopped Dimitri before he could continue. “I would have thought with all that strength you possess this cut would have been more severe. But I’m disappointed. It’s really nothing.”

Felix sighed as he lowered his sword. “Are you just going to stand there and gawk at me?” Felix rolled his eyes. “But don’t think I’m going to go easy on you. Give me everything you’ve got… Dimitri.”

His name almost sounded foreign coming from Felix’s mouth. Since when was the last time Felix called him by his name?

Felix was never one to give a typical apology. Even when they were kids, Felix would never apologize for anything. But he would show it in different ways. After he had a fight with Dimitri or Sylvain or Ingrid, he would show he was sorry differently from just saying it.

And right now, this was his apology. 

Dimitri chuckled. It was genuine. “Well don’t underestimate me or Sylvain, Felix.”

Felix grinned as he readied his blade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live for wholesome Dimitri x Felix x Sylvain content. I couldn’t write this story without giving at least SOME of it.  
> Next up is more fight scenes, which I still hate. So the next chapter may take awhile to come out. So just keep an eye out!


	27. Behind the Mask

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DIMITRI GANG RISE UP WE GOT OUR BOY TO NUMBER 1.  
> ALSO BLESS MY LUCK I GOT THE ALM/CELICA VALENTINE’S ALT ;’D

The Death Knight was at Fort Merceus.

A scouter sent earlier had returned with the news. The mood of the army greatly shifted once the news reached them. The Death Knight was one of the strongest enemies any of them have ever faced; to know that he was waiting for them at the Fort was terrifying. 

Byleth supposed that they shouldn’t have been surprised with the news. It was called the Impregnable Fortress for a reason and, in the state the Empire was in, putting an even stronger threat on top of a place with a name like that was a strong move. But in all their years as a mercenary, Byleth had never encountered a foe as devastating as the Death Knight. And they could only assume that in the over five years since they had last seen him, he had probably grown even stronger.

But Byleth had to remain strong. They had to put on a brave face for their students, who were probably even more terrified.

Byleth made sure to check on each of their students before the battle. They insured each of them was staying focused on the coming battle, even if they didn’t get the chance to speak to them personally. For the most part, Byleth didn’t seem to have anything to worry about. However, there were a few Byleth had to give encouragement to. Marianne seemed to be praying more than usual, nervous about the coming fight. Ashe was rusty since he was injured during the battle at the Great Bridge. Byleth had to reassure Dedue several times that Dimitri would be alright without him…

But there was one student that Byleth noticed was the most nervous. Mercedes mostly stayed relatively composed throughout the war; she felt the need to stay strong for everyone else. But Byleth noticed that she seemed off this time, her occasional prayers and just overall nerves becoming more clearly visible as they grew closer to the Fort. Byleth made sure to spend extra time talking to her before the fighting began.

But before they knew it, they had arrived at the Impregnable Fortress. 

And it definitely lived up to its nickname. Nearly everywhere they looked, Byleth spotted some kind of advanced weaponry that someone was operating. Demonic Beasts larger than any Byleth had ever seen where scattered throughout, trampling allies and foes alike. The army hadn’t even gotten to the Death Knight yet and the Empire was already proving to them that they didn’t want to lose this Fort. 

But eventually, the army made it past the main gate. The inner sanction of the fort was just as heavily guarded as the others, with weaponry and Demonic Beasts running amuck. The army had already suffered quite a bit of casualties, but they had to keep pushing forward. They had come to far to lose their chance at taking the Fort. 

As Byleth prepared to command the army, they were just thankful that none of their former students would be present here. Linhardt had mentioned to Byleth that Caspar’s family was in charge of the fort, so he feared that they would eventually have to face him. But based on what a scouter saw earlier, it seemed Caspar was not here, which both Byleth and Linhardt were thankful for. If anything, Byleth was more thankful for Linhardt; they had noticed that Linhardt was always close with Caspar. Closer than just friends, that is. Even after he switched classes, Linhardt never stopped seeing him. It was a shame the two ended up on opposite sides of the war. 

But Byleth had to snap back into focus quickly. Odds are, the Death Knight would be looking for them specifically. In the few times Byleth had met him, the Death Knight had always had some kind of fascination for them. In a way, he was similar to Felix; they both were constantly looking for a worthy opponent. However, unlike Felix, the Death Knight was much pickier. As far as Byleth knew, the Death Knight had only ever shown interest in fighting them. Byleth hoped that the sooner they fought him and ended it, the sooner this battle would be over. 

Quickly taking command the moment they stepped into the center sanctum, Byleth separated their students into groups to take out the advanced weaponry and Demonic Beasts. Byleth hated sending nearly all of their students off to fight without keeping an eye on them, but they had to have faith in their students. Once they had all dispersed, the only students left with Byleth were Dedue and Mercedes, who were the two students Byleth was the most concerned with mentally. The pair also worked out; Mercedes would be good for healing any injuries the Death Knight might cause, and Dedue was probably the only student Byleth knew would take a hit from his lance. They had to hope that they would be enough.

Making sure that their students were well taken care of, Byleth set out on their mission. They ran through the Fort, using their Levin Sword to pick off enemies one by one, with Mercedes and Dedue finishing off the ones that they missed. Running through the great walls of the Fort was like going through a maze, with every turn making them feel like they were getting lost. Byleth cursed, wishing that they had taken up flying just to make their current situation easier. But dwelling on the past wouldn’t do anything for them now, they just had to stay focused on finding the Death Knight.

But the Death Knight found them.

The group had just narrowly missed gaining the attention of a Demonic Beast that Flayn, Seteth, and Gilbert were trying to take down when they found him. Near the back of the center portion of the Fort is where they first clashed weapons. They had just turned a corner when the sudden sound of horse’s hooves hitting the brick filled Byleth’s ears. They just barely managed to bring their sword up to block the massive hit from the man’s lance made contact with their sword. Byleth was pushed back by the impact, but stayed steady as they attempted to push back against him, grunting as they struggled. Before Byleth had the chance, Dedue had interfered and swung his axe at the man, forcing him to back off.

The Death Knight barely gave the group time to breath before he charged at them again, remaining almost completely silent as he charged. He was clearly on a mission, and judging by his constant assault the Death Knight had towards them specifically, Byleth doubted that he was going to let up. But despite the attacks, Dedue did his best to keep the pressure off of Byleth. He was constantly trying to break the fighting between the teacher and horse rider, no matter how difficult it might be. When he could, he blocked the attacks, but there were times where the lance of the Death Knight made noticeable wounds on Dedue. Thankfully, Mercedes was able to heal him swiftly, but if this kept up, she wouldn’t be able to heal fast enough.

Trying to take charge, Byleth tried to gain an offensive upper hand. There was only so much they could do acting defensively that the only thing they felt they could do now was just keep acting offensively at this point. Thankfully, it seemed that this was making the most progress, as the Death Knight didn’t have as much of a chance to attack. Seeing that Byleth had the Death Knight distracted, Dedue made a bold move. Taking his axe, he swung it down on the horse the Knight rode, sending the creature tumbling to the ground, slaying it.

As the Death Knight tumbled off the now dead horse, Byleth jumped back and prepared their next course of action. As he tumbled, Byleth fired off several magic spells at him, now that he didn’t have a chance to attack. Once the Death Knight had reclaimed his footing, it was clear that the assault had wounded him. Byleth knew it was now more than ever. 

Making sure Dedue was prepared, the two offensively attacked the Death Knight. As the Death Knight tried to block and dodge, the other opponent would strike him. Without his mobility, the was severely crippled, and it was clear it was a losing battle. Knowing that this was their chance, Byleth raised their Levin sword high before they brought it down on the Death Knight, sending his lance flying out of his hand, forcing him on his knees. The battle was over.

After all this time, Byleth had finally bested the Death Knight.

But getting him on his knees was not something they wished to celebrate when they saw what had occurred. From the impact of the fighting, part of the Death Knight mask had broken off, revealing the lower half of his face. That correlation alone was enough to make Byleth’s eyes widen, but as insult to injury, they could spot strands of his long, blonde hair peeking through underneath.

After the Death Knight made his first appearance at the monastery, it was suggested by Seteth that he and Jeritza could be one in the same. And considering everything that happened with Flayn’s disappearance and Jeritza’s sudden disappearance afterwards, the theory seemed all but true. And now with the clumps of blonde making its appearance underneath the mask, it seemed that theory was even more fact now.

But Byleth wouldn’t let that deter them. After all, they had never formed any kind of bond or friendship with the fencing teacher. He was always unusually distant, and for Byleth to be calling someone else distant was really saying something. There was nothing standing in their way of striking him down right now.

“Professor, wait.”

Her voice was soft in the midst of the battle, like it always had. Turning around to face her, Byleth’s eyes spotted Mercedes, but the cleric kept her eyes pasted on the Death Knight. Her eyes studied the deep angles of his now visible chin as she walked closer, as if searching for something else. 

Her large, blue eyes looked mournful as she bent down to his level. Byleth kept their sword close by, fearing that the Death Knight would try to harm her, but he didn’t. Instead, Byleth just watched intently: if Mercedes was acting this way, they knew better than to interfere. When Mercedes had a hunch on something, she tended to be right.

Mercedes’s lips tried to form a halfhearted smile and failed. “Emile… is that you?”

Byleth’s lips parted, surprised by what Mercedes was implying. Mercedes had mentioned her brother Emile on several occasions in the time Byleth had known her. She had always spoken so fondly of him despite the fact that they shared different parents. How could the Death Knight-No, how could Jeritza be related to someone as sweet as her?

Byleth tried to ignore the obvious signs, such as the two sharing a hair color and them recalling Mercedes once mentioning something odd about Jeritza. Instead, they tried to focus on what was occurring right in front of their eyes.

The Death Knight-or Jeritza-or Emile-looked away as Mercedes reached out to him. Mercedes looked smaller than usual next to his large frame, but him recoiling like this made the difference in size less important. Judging by the way he was acting currently; he must have some love for his sister.

“Emile, please, talk to me!” Mercedes pleaded. “I’m sorry… I am so sorry I didn’t try to help you sooner. Hate me for that, if you must, but please, talk to me.”

Jeritza grunted. “You must leave.”

“And leave you? I wouldn’t.” Mercedes’s voice was choking up.

“You must.” Jeritza’s voice was much sterner now. “You will die if you stay.”

“I am not going to leave you.” Mercedes affirmed him. 

Jeritza was about to speak, but the sudden roaring of Demonic Beasts overwhelmed him. Looking towards the sound, Byleth saw several of the large Demonic Beasts running towards them, droll emerging from their mouths as they attempted their assault.

Byleth wasn’t expecting Jeritza to somehow get up and use a magical barrier to stop them. They were surprised, all this time, the Death Knight had never shown any skill in magic. However, considering he was related to Mercedes, they supposed it wasn’t that unlikely. 

But they didn’t think his magic would be this strong. He was holding off multiple Demonic Beasts, which were fighting on top of one another just to reach the group. But despite the tension, the seal refused to budge, but cracks were slowly beginning to emerge.

“You.” Jeritza was looking directly at Byleth. “Upon my horse’s corpse, there is a satchel. Inside, you will find something that should prove useful to you.”

“I received what you will find in a raid while the monastery was still uninhabited.” Byleth’s eyes widened before Jeritza continued. “Tell that prince of yours to make those who slither in the dark pay for what they did.”

Dimitri. Jeritza knew about what happened with Dimitri. Running over to the satchel attached to the horse, Byleth was shocked at what they saw.

The Sword and Shield of Serios. 

And also, in a smaller pocket, was a small, blue pendant with a crest stone located in the center. It was the Rafail Gem, the Hero’s Relic that was compatable with Mercedes’s Crest. 

Jeritza looked away. “I believed that Edelgard would put an end to those dastards. But I fear that at this point, by the time she tries to accomplish that goal, it will be too late. Ensure that you end them in my stead.”

Byleth could do nothing else but nod.

The roars of the Demonic Beasts were growing more intense. “Now leave, or you will parish before you get the chance.”

“Emile…” Mercedes tried to prevent the tears falling from her eyes.

“Mercedes…” Jeritza didn’t look back. “May we meet again, in another life.”

And before Mercedes had the chance to say anything else, the magical seal lowered, and Jeritza charged at the Demonic Beasts. Byleth and Dedue forced Mercedes to look away as Jeritza, while putting up one hell of a fight, was quickly overwhelmed by the monstrous creatures. 

The two continued to keep Mercedes close until back up arrived to slowly pick off the Demonic Beasts remaining, making the Impregnable Fortress theirs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> F.
> 
> Sorry about the longer than usual wait on this chapter. The writers block hit me super hard, which I especially hated because I LOVE Mercedes. Like a lot. Like aside from Dimitri she is my favorite FE3H character. So having writers block on her big chapter sucked :/
> 
> And school has been kicking my butt so that’s fun.
> 
> Ok, so I just want to make one thing clear about something in this chapter. In case you didn’t catch on, yes, Linhardt is hardcore crushing on Caspar. Here’s the thing: I love Fire Emblem, I love it a lot, but I have a problem with the series. That problem is that while they have gotten better with LBGTQ+ representation over the years, the L_GTQ+ representation is a little lackluster. Listen, we love our Bisexual fam, but we need some of those other sexual orientations in there! 
> 
> So basically, if a character in FE3H is a gay/lesbian option, they are going to be full on gay/lesbian here. I am not trying to shame Bisexuals or anything, I just think the gays and lesbians need some love too, yeah know? Don’t worry, Byleth is still hella bi (and genderless) but everyone else is gay af. So Linhardt, my precious boy, congratulations my beautiful gay son, you hardcore in love with Caspar.
> 
> Here's to hoping that the next chapter won't take as long!


	28. Calm Before the Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cindered Shadows is a lot of fun :D
> 
> I barely have time to play it but I am enjoying what I have played so far.

For her seemingly innocent and meek personality, Mercedes was by far one of Byleth’s strongest willed students. 

After what occurred at the Fort, Byleth and Dedue gave the cleric time to mourn the loss of her brother. She cried over his now tattered body, wishing that she could have done something to change what happened. After the dust had settled, Annette eventually found the group and began comforting her childhood friend. The two cradled each other until Claude had secured the Fort and insured it was safe to return to the monastery.

On the way back, Mercedes’s strength began to peak through. The moment the army began marching back to the monastery, she showed just how strong willed she was. She didn’t shed a single tear, but Byleth noticed the glisten in her eyes whenever anyone asked her how she was holding up. Annette didn’t leave her side the entirety of the walk back. But Mercedes insured her that she was fine, but the two were too close of friends for them to part. 

When the monastery was in sight, Byleth glanced into the pouch on their horse. It was the current home of the Shield and Sword of Serios. 

“Do you intend to give those to His Highness?”

Byleth didn’t realize how close Dedue was riding to them until they heard his deep voice right next to them. “For the time being, I wasn’t planning on it.”

Keeping the Sword and Shield of Serios from him wasn’t really an issue in their mind. While Dimitri was the only person that could wield them properly in the army, he was still in no condition to fight, so he didn’t need them. However, Byleth did feel bad about hiding Areadhar from him.

Before he died, Rodrigue mentioned that he had something for Dimitri that he would like to give him once he was better. After his death, what he intended to give Dimitri was found in his room. Areadhar was the most important of the gifts, but Rodrigue had also gotten Dimitri a white set of armor with a long blue cape. Byleth had found out after the fact from Gilbert that the armor was similar to the armor that Dimitri’s father, Lambert, once wore. 

Keeping Rodrigue’s parting gift from Dimitri was difficult. But it was insisted that since Dimitri would not be fighting any time soon, he would not need it. Byleth supposed it was a fair point, but they still hated keeping it from him.

“I see.” Dedue rubbed his hand against his horse’s mane. 

“Do you not think that is wise?” Byleth valued Dedue’s opinion on the matter. Regardless of how close Byleth was to Dimitri, it was a fact that Dedue knew him better than they ever could. 

“I have no issue with it, but I wouldn’t get comfortable with keeping it from him.” Dedue raised his head. His eyes were planted on the silhouette of the monastery, which was now viewable in the distance. “His Highness is stubborn. He hates the idea of sitting idle while everyone else is fighting a battle he believes is his. He will probably start insisting that he will want to join the army soon, especially with Enbarr on the horizon.”

Byleth knew that Dedue was right, especially now that Dimitri’s injuries were pretty much nonexistent now. But Byleth still feared the injuries to his mental state that would likely take a very, very long time to heal, if they would at all.

For that reason, Byleth had to ensure that he stayed off the battlefield for as long as possible. They knew there was no avoiding Enbarr, in fact they were surprised that Claude hadn’t approached them on the subject yet. But if they could, they would prevent Dimitri from coming with them to fight.

“We will deal with that matter when the time comes then,” Byleth responded before trotting their horse ahead of Dedue’s.

Just thinking of Dimitri made them want to see him quicker.

***

For the most part, everything went smoothly when they returned. Despite Annette’s protests, Mercedes went to the infirmary to assist healing those injuried at the Fort. Byleth knew that she would be mourning the death of her brother for a while, but they knew that she would be alright. Once they insured that everything was situated fine, Byleth went on their search for Dimitri.

“Yo, Professor!”

They were walking near the training grounds when they heard the familiar voice of Sylvain. Looking towards the direction of the voice, they spotted him, with Felix walking along side him. “Heard the battle went well, despite my absence.” Felix commented. 

Dimitri wasn’t with them.

And it caused Byleth’s still heart to start racing.

“Where’s Dimitri?”

Felix gave them a look as if appalled they didn’t ask how the two were. “In your room, why?”

It was then when Byleth glanced at Felix’s cheek. There was a decently sized bandage covering a wound.

Their heart raced further.

Dimitri wasn’t with them. He was in their room. There was a wound on Felix’s cheek.

A million different possibilities running through their mind. How did Felix get injured? He wasn’t one to typically do so. Was there an attack on a monastery? No, they would have been informed. Then how did he get the injury? He never got a wound during training, but it was the most likely cause. 

With Dimitri not being here, it only made the possibilities running through Byleth’s mind worse. Was Dimitri having another panic attack? Why wouldn’t Sylvain and Felix be keeping an eye on him now? Did Dimitri hurt Felix? Did they get into a fight? Did Dimitri begin to panic and the two didn’t know what to do so they just stuffed him in his room?

Whatever the reason, Byleth couldn’t stand around and wait to find out.

Completely ignoring Felix’s question, Byleth made a beeline for their room. They had to get to Dimitri now. If he was having another panic attack, they had to end it right now. They wouldn’t let him suffer for another minute.

Dismissing Sylvain and Felix’s yells in the distance, Byleth made it to their room door and pushed it open swiftly.

What they found completely surprised them. 

Dimitri wasn’t having a panic attack. He wasn’t cowering in the corner or under a bed like they thought he would. The room was completely spotless, just how they left it, not a single piece of furniture was destroyed. 

But what surprised them the most was Dimitri himself, who was sleeping soundly in his bed. His soft snores were the only sounds that filled the room. Based on his positioning, he was in a deep sleep, with his arm hanging off of the bed as he laid on his side. He had the sheets pulled up to his chest, which shifted slightly only when Dimitri breathed. He looked completely at peace, the most at peace since they had rescued him. 

Byleth didn’t understand. Dimitri hardly got any sleep in the time they spent with him. He would only be able to sleep for a few hours at a time before he was woken up by a night terror or by his ghosts yelling at him. And even when he slept, he always looked tense, as if waiting for one of the two things to wake him. How was he so at peace now?

Before Byleth could stare at him any longer, Sylvain gently pushed them out of the way and shut the door. Once he had, he bent down, placing his hands on his knees, out of breath from chasing them. “Jeez Professor…” He huffed. “Could you have slowed down just a second…”

Felix rolled his eyes at his comment.

But Byleth was still in shock. “He… How long as he been asleep?” They asked.

Sylvain huffed again. “I don’t know, early this morning, I think?”

Early this morning? It was late afternoon now. Had Dimitri really been asleep for that long? If it were true, this was by far the longest he had slept since his rescue. 

“How… How did you manage that?”

Their two former students gave a confused look.

“Because… he was exhausted?” Felix crossed his arms. “I don’t think he slept once while you were gone. He was too busy helping Sylvain train.”

“He trained with you two?” As if things couldn’t get more shocking for Byleth. They not only got him to sleep but to train?

Sylvain rose with a grin on his face. Byleth hadn’t seen a grin like that from him since his injury. This grin was genuine. “Yeah, and I owe him big time for it.” Sylvain rubbed his hand behind his head. “It’s because of him I can actually wield my lance somewhat properly again.”

So not only did Dimitri train with him, but somehow, he managed to help Sylvain enough to use his lance again? Byleth was beginning to think that he would never be able to use a lance again (as much as they hated that thought), but Dimitri proved them wrong.

“Then… Felix, what happened to your cheek?” Byleth asked.

He rolled his eyes. “This? It’s hardly a scratch,” he sighed. “I’ll be honest, Dimitri freaked out a little when it happened, but it’s really nothing. I was disappointed.”

Did Felix just call Dimitri… Dimitri?

Just what went on while they were gone?

“Professor?” Byleth didn’t notice how long they were quite for until Sylvain pointed it out. “Are you alright-?”

Byleth hugged him.

He was so surprised that his entire body tensed up, but Sylvain deserved this. He and Felix had done what Byleth was beginning to think was impossible. And not only that, but they had done it in a few days as opposed to the month Byleth was left wondering what they should try next. 

It was still little improvements in the grand scheme of things, but Dimitri was recovering. As long as he kept doing that, with the help of either themselves or their students, he would be alright.

“Thank you.” Was all they could say.

It took a while, but Sylvain eventually hugged back. His body still felt strange from the exchange, but Byleth was happy nonetheless. 

Once Byleth separated from him, they turned to Felix.

“Don’t even think about it.” He said before he ran off.  
***  
Byleth left Dimitri to continue sleeping not long after that. They spent the time he was asleep talking to their other students and assisting the healers in the infirmary. They also took a little bit of time to themselves by taking a bath and eating dinner with some of their former students.

When Byleth returned to their room, Dimitri was still asleep. They smiled as he continued to snore, still sleeping soundly, recovering from his exhausted state. And they would continue to let him sleep for as long as he needed it.

While Byleth stayed in the room, they remained quiet. They spent time at their desk doing paperwork with Dimitri’s snores being the only noise in the room. Thankfully the small candlelight they lit didn’t disturb him.

They could have done the paperwork somewhere else, they supposed, but they wanted to be there when Dimitri eventually awoke.

Byleth was making decent progress on the paperwork as a few hours passed. Truthfully, they always held the paperwork off for as long as they could, not wanting to do it despite eventually needing to. They were pleased with the progress they were making currently. 

“Byleth…?”

His voice was groggy.

Byleth turned to see his one blue eye looking back at him. They could barely make out his face in the dark, but they could spot his eye anywhere. 

“Dimitri…” Byleth stood from their seat, walking towards him. Dimitri didn’t move at all since he awoke. He was likely too tried to do so.

When Byleth made it to his bed, they sat on the edge of it and held his hand. “You’re back.” Dimitri yawned, but he was smiling.

“I am,” Byleth affirmed. “Hello.”

Dimitri chuckled as he began to sit up. He stretched lightly as he did. “Hello.” He breathed. “I’m assuming the battle went okay?”

Byleth stopped themselves from frowning. Telling Dimitri about how the Death Knight was Mercedes’s brother was not something they think he could understand in his groggy state. They would tell him tomorrow. “About as well as it could have.” They assured him.

Dimitri seemed to believe them. “Good…” He yawned again. “My apologies, what time is it?”

“It’s getting pretty late now.” Byleth informed. 

“It is?” Dimitri placed his hand on his head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I would sleep that long…”

“Don’t apologize.” When he got up, Dimitri’s hand lost its contact with Byleth’s. But they found it again now. “I am just glad you got some sleep. You must feel better.”

“I feel… dazed.”

“That’s probably because you haven’t had a good night’s rest in so long,” Byleth knew this was the case. “It will pass. Your body is just not used to it.”

“I suppose.” Dimitri looked down. Honestly, it didn’t look like he was that happy about finally getting some sleep. Or maybe it was just that he was still tired. “I hope I won’t be up all night now. I don’t wish to keep you awake…”

“Don’t worry about it.” Byleth glanced down at his hand. “I heard you were sparing with Felix and Sylvain.”

Dimitri tensed. “I’m sorry. I know I shouldn’t be doing so, but I did it anyway. Are you mad with me?”

“No at all.” Byleth smiled. “I heard you managed to help Sylvain quite a bit, he was very thankful.”

He grunted. “It was the least I could do.” He sat up and crossed his legs, stretching slightly. “Truthfully, I don’t remember causing those injuries to him, but…”

Byleth frowned. “You weren’t in good shape, I know he doesn’t blame you, and I am sure he told you that.” 

“He did.” Dimitri confirmed. “But I still owe it to him to help. His injuries aren’t too different from ones I received while in exile. I had to learn how to deal with my body not cooperating, so I just taught him what I learned.”

Byleth looked away. They were always so focused on what he went through while Cornelia had him captive that they forgot that there was a five-year period of him wandering Fodlan as an outcast. 

He had been through far too much.

“Byleth?”

They hummed.

“I… I’m glad you’re back.”

Byleth smiled as they gripped his hand. “I’m glad to see you again.”

After that, Byleth suggested that the two go get Dimitri some food. His sleeping schedule would for sure be a mess for a few days, but they were just happy he got some sleep. 

But they had to make sure he got all the sleep he could.

Now that they captured the Fort, there was only one obstacle standing in their way. One more obstacle before this bloody war would be over. 

Enbarr.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the words of a wizard, We’re in the endgame now.
> 
> We still have a few more chapters to go before we actually get to Enbarr, but it is within sight. And boy oh boy, there is still some whump and angst on the horizon. So get ready for it :D  
> 


	29. The Decision

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for 5000+ hits o.O

Dimitri spent the next week trying to relax. He knew what was coming: he didn’t know how long it would take until then, but Enbarr was coming.

He knew that since everything that happened, he wasn’t the most optimistic of people, but now with their final battle approaching, he had to take the worst-case scenario into account. His precious allies, his friends… anyone of them could parish in the coming battle. And even if they didn’t… He had unfinished business of his own that he needed to take care of. 

So, he tried his best to tie up all loose ends with his friends. Despite everyone keeping him in the dark on when Enbarr was occurring, he tried his best to do everything as soon as possible. From his childhood friends to Golden Deer allies he only got to know relatively well only recently, he had to finish everything he started.

He didn’t know how much time he would have to do it after all.

But there were some things that remained relatively the same from day to day. Byleth was constantly being pulled away from him, attending to their daily duties, but they made sure to spend a good portion of the day with him. It didn’t really matter what the two did together, be was just happy to have them around. When he wasn’t with Byleth, he was with Dedue, and the two tended to do things they did before all of this ever happened. Having Dedue with him after believing for years that he was dead… Dimitri was still not used to the idea, but he gladly welcomed it.

Surprisingly, he had formed quite a strong relationship with Claude. The Master Tactician had always had the benefits of Fodlan overall at the forefront of his goals, but despite that he set aside time to spend with him. Dimitri was thankful for this company, even though Claude never had really dismissed those mischievous tendencies he had when they were at the academy. 

For example, one day that week, Claude had attempted to get Dimitri and his wyvern, Minerva, to get along. 

The white beast growled as Dimitri kept his distance. “Come on, Dimitri!” Claude would say. “She’s not going to bite, I promise!”

But Dimitri knew better. That wyvern hated him. He didn’t know if the creature could just sense what he had done during the years he was outcasted from the Kingdom, or if it was another reason entirely. But no matter what Claude tried, Minerva would not let Dimitri near him.

At least Claude got a good laugh out of it though.

Another thing that remained consistent were his mornings with Felix.

Ever since what occurred between the two while the army was off gaining the Fort, the bond between the two had increased. For the first time since Glenn died, Felix was actually treating Dimitri like a childhood friend again as opposed to a boar. There were still some moments where his stubbornness slipped through, but that was Felix in a nutshell, and Dimitri knew that wasn’t going to change.

Felix went to go spar every morning, early in the morning. Dimitri still didn’t exactly get as much sleep as he should despite his improvements, so he was always up at the same time when he awoke. Felix dragged him along to spar with him since he was already up, stating that he used to get Sylvain to do it, but he always wanted to sleep in. “He’s never at his best because he’d rather be lazy and sleep.” Felix explained. 

Dimitri was happy to train with him, even though he was initially worried. His major Crest of Blaidydd was always something he worried would harm others. But it seemed that now that Dimitri’s mental state was improving, his control over his Crest was as well. He still feared he would one day mess up and harm others, but Felix was too stubborn to take that as an excuse. At the very least, the sparing helped Dimitri train his Crest to be better under his control, or at least that is what he hoped.

But having his Crest under his strict control wasn’t good enough for Felix, Dimitri would soon find out.

It was the end of the week, and Dimitri and Felix were once again training. Dimitri grunted as Felix bested him in combat, his back hitting the ground hard as his lance flew out of his hand. The slightest shift of Dimitri’s body to get back up was stopped by Felix’s sword pointed at his chest.

Felix let out a sigh as he returned his sword of his side. “You’re getting better, I suppose.” Was the closest thing to a compliment Felix could give.

Felix extended his hand to help Dimitri up, which the prince took. “You suppose?” Dimitri said with a slight grin.

There was no grin on Felix’s face. “You’re holding back.”

Dimitri frowned. 

“I have to.” 

“Do you?” Felix placed his finger on top of the training sword, testing its sharpness. Apparently, it wasn’t good enough for him, because he returned that sword to the rack and picked up a new one. 

“You saw what happened if I don’t.” Dimitri looked down at the ground when he responded. 

Felix gave a disapproving huff. “You act as if you’re walking on eggshells even though you know one will crack eventually.”

Dimitri grunted. 

“You’re worried you’ll hurt someone, and I understand that to an extent.” Felix let his sword drop to his side. “But you can’t let that fear dictate you; by doing that you are only letting those who did this to you win.”

“You want my honest opinion, Dimitri?” Felix glared at Dimitri directly in the eye. “These dastards that did this to you, they don’t expect you to use the full extent of your power. They thought they broke you in your captivity and that you aren’t a treat. They think you’ll be too weak or scared to use what they cursed you with.”

Dimitri didn’t look away as Felix finished his thought:

“I say make them pay for it.”

The idea of seeking out revenge now was something Dimitri no longer desired. He had come to accept that what happened nine years ago happened, and getting the vengeance his ghosts screamed at him for wasn’t going to change that. Even seeking Edelgard’s head was something he didn’t want anymore; he knew that she was probably just as much as a pawn in this war as he once was. 

But here Felix was, practically telling him to seek it back out.

Dimitri knew that it wasn’t what he meant, at least not fully. Felix just didn’t want Dimitri to have to suffer any more than those dastards already made him. And him constantly living in fear that he would hurt those left that he loved was painful enough. But was living in fear truly that bad if accidently hurting one of his allies was a real possibility? He had already hurt Byleth and Sylvain, granted he wasn’t in the right state of mind, but he still harmed them. He hurt Felix only just recently, even though he continues to state it wasn’t a big deal. And there were too many other times that he had accidently activated his Crests. When he had a sudden panic attack. When his ghosts suddenly screamed at him when he was least expecting it. When something other people wouldn’t even think about would send him spiraling because it somehow reminded him of something those mages did to him in their captivity…

But was that a good enough reason to not use the power they granted him?

Could his curse be used as a blessing?

“FeFe!”

_FeFe…?!_

Turning towards the door of the training grounds, Dimitri saw Annette walking towards the two, humming as she did so. “What are you doing still training?” She asked. “We have to get to the council room!”

Felix rolled his eyes. “Ugh, don’t remind me.”

“What’s this about?” Dimitri wondered out loud.

“Oh, don’t worry about it, Dimitri.” Annette claimed. “Today is just the first day we are discussing plans for Enbarr.”

It was? No one told him…

“Do I have to go?” Felix complained. “I am no good with strategy, I’d rather train.”

“Yes, you have to go!” Annette scolded him, taking his training sword from his hand and placing it back on the rack. “You have to be caught up to speed on the plan if you want our victory at Enbarr to go smoothly!”

“if that is the case, then shouldn’t I be going?”

Dimitri’s words left Annette and Felix speechless.

Dimitri knew why he wasn’t told about Enbarr: no one wanted him to go, or they didn’t expect him to. Everyone thought that he was still too unstable to fight. But no matter his state, Dimitri knew he didn’t have a choice in the matter. He had to fight at Enbarr. He didn’t care who would protest his decision, whether it be his allies, Claude, or Byleth, he knew he had to. He wasn’t there to take back his Kingdom, for any of these other important fights that he should have been a part of. Enbarr was a fight that he couldn’t miss. He owed it to everyone to fight.

Annette finally blinked. “Dimitri… Are you sure…?”

Dimitri remained firm.

Felix huffed out a laugh. “If you want to crash the meeting then, by all means. I’d make things a lot more interesting.”  
***  
Dimitri stared at the looming doors leading to the council room, debating whether or not he should enter.

His ghosts yelled at him, calling him a coward for even considering not stepping in. He didn’t want to listen to them, but it was hard to do so when he agreed with what they were saying.

 _He had to fight._

And knowing this, he stepped into the council room.

He had interrupted Claude saying something, but his sentence stopped the minute the doors opened. All eyes immediately darted to Dimitri, wide with utter shock.

Dimitri inhaled. There was no turning back now.

“I… Heard there was a meeting about Enbarr today.” He tried to say it as firmly as possible. 

Claude leaned back in his chair, motioning to the rest of the people in the room. “There is.”

It was only when Claude motioned to everyone else in the room when Dimitri realized just how tense everyone had become. Everyone, from the Golden Deer students he was still getting to know, to his closest allies in the Blue Lions, to Byleth… They all stared at him with broadened eyes. Clearly, they were all equally bomb shelled that he was here.

“Dimitri,” Claude placed his hand on the table. “I think I have a pretty good guess as to why you are here. But I told you, didn’t I? You need to focus on recovering.”

“My injuries have recovered just fine.”

“You know I don’t mean that.” Claude’s words were harsh.

Dimitri’s lips flattened together. “I… I understand your concerns regarding my mental wellbeing, but this is a fight I can’t avoid.”

“Dimitri.” He hadn’t noticed that Byleth had rose from their chair to his side. They gripped him by the arm; it was gentle, but Dimitri knew their intentions. “Come on, let’s-“

He felt horrible about it, but he pushed away from their grip. They almost seemed just as shocked about it as he did.

“I… I _can’t_ sit idle any longer.” His voice trembled despite his attempts. “I know what everyone is thinking, alright? I know everyone thinks I’ll break down the moment I hit the battlefield. Everyone thinks I am too unstable and that I would just be a liability… But I must fight.”

“We don’t view you as a liability,” Marianne voiced. “We are just concerned about your wellbeing.”

“We only just rescued you a few months ago,” Ignatz reminded. “None of us blame you for wanting to take more time to recover.”

“I have recovered enough. Even if I didn’t, I still feel obligated to fight.” Dimitri claimed. “I wasn’t there to liberate the Kingdom, my Kingdom. The least I could do is bring peace to Fodlan for the people of Fhirdiad.”

“You recall me telling you that no one knows your alive in the Kingdom, correct?” Claude brought the memory flooding back. “If you make an appearance in this battle, word would surely get out. Once that happens, you’ll practically be forced to take up your role as King right then and there. Are you prepared for that?”

Dimitri chuckled. “I have been groomed to become a King since the day I was the Tragedy. I am ready as I’ll ever be.”

A small smile glistened on Dedue’s face. Mentioning the Tragedy should have caused him to frown, but he had taken too much pride in his King.

“But are you prepared to fight?” Ashe asked.

“I have faith in the boar’s abilities,” Felix said the word ‘boar’ in a joking matter. “I have spent time sparring with him, I know what he is capable of. I say we use that as a blessing.”

“What was done to him is anything but a blessing!” Lysithea was clearly furious over Felix’s comments. “For you to even call it as such is dismissing everything that those dastards did!”

“Don’t twist my words,” Felix defended. “I know what was done to him, but I also know the strength he has received from such events. We can use that to our advantage.”

“So, you want to use him as a pawn then?” Lysithea accused.

“Enough you two!” Leonie interrupted.

“And stop speaking for him; he is right here, stop speaking of him as if he isn’t even in the room.” Ingrid was clearly heated from the argument as well. “Dimitri, are you comfortable with using your strength like this?”

Dimitri looked down at the ground. “I must admit, I am honestly terrified of the power I possess. What those who slither in the dark did to me… It is still something I don’t fully understand.” He lifted his hand and observed it before clenching it into a fist. “But if using this power will help ease the coming battle, I am more than willing to use it.”

“But are you able to control it?” Lorenz asked. “I think the last thing anyone wants is for your power to go haywire and hurt those you didn’t mean to… I don’t mean to cause any offense, but it is a genuine concern.”

“He’ll do just fine.” Linhardt yawned. “It’s obvious his Crest’s abilities are tied to his emotions. The only reason it activated so much before because his mental state. He has clearly improved since then, so he should be just fine.”

“Again, let him speak for himself.” Ingrid groaned before looking to Dimitri once more.

Dimitri hesitated. “I can handle it.” 

“Even if it means facing Edelgard?” Annette’s question was one Dimitri knew was coming.

“I am no longer interested in thoughts of revenge.” Dimitri claimed honestly. “Truthfully, I don’t even believe Edelgard is responsible for what happened in Duscur. I think she is being used in this war as a pawn; she doesn’t understand the full extent of what she is doing.”

“But she still killed Lady Rhea and caused mass casualties,” Flayn reminded. 

“I understand that, but I wouldn’t want to fight her regardless.” He could feel his voice cracking the longer he talked about her. “I know there is good in her. And now that I know she likely faced the same atrocities I did at the hands of the slithers; I take pity on her. I will fight her if I must, but truthfully? The only thing I wish for is a future where I reach for her hand and she reaches back.”

“The odds of that happening are slim to none.” Hilda voiced honestly. 

“But I will never be able to forgive myself if I don’t try.” He knew what the odds were, but that didn’t matter. He had to hold onto the hope that he could prevent any more bloodshed.

“I appreciate your diligence, Friend.” Claude stood from his seat. “But I think it is clear we have concerns.”

Dimitri looked down at the ground, disappointed. 

He heard Claude chuckle. That alone was enough to make Dimitri look back up. “I think I have made up my mind, but I would like to hear from everyone else, if they wish. So have at it, should we allow Dimitri to fight with us?”

“Absolutely not.” Lysithea continued to protest. “I don’t think we should use his abilities like that.”

“I say let him!” Raphael hollered. “That’ll give the Empire a fight they’re sure to remember!”

“Agreed,” Sylvain crossed his arms. “He helped me when I thought I didn’t stand a chance, the least I could do is return the favor.”

“I must admit, I have my concerns,” Mercedes chimed in. “But if what happened at the Fort was any indication, we will need all the help we can get.”

“Whatever his Highness desires, I will show my support.” Dedue said.

“I am in agreement with that.” Gilbert said right after.

“Long live the King.” Felix grinned.

Slowly, more and more members of the army voiced their opinions. And much to Dimitri’s surprise, nearly all of them voiced their desire to let him fight. 

But there was one that was noticeably quiet.

Turning to them, Dimitri made eye contact with Byleth.

They shut their eyes and huffed. “After everything you’ve been through, I only want you to stay safe. You deserve at least that.” They reopened their eyes. “I suppose I’ll just have to keep an eye on you to insure that happens.”

Dimitri smiled. 

Turning back to Claude, Dimitri heard the words he was praying he would hear:

“Then my mind is made up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *the shackled wolves ost intensifies* HERE WE GO BOIS.
> 
> Except Enbarr isn’t coming next lul. We got a few more unfinished businesses to attend to, but soon… it is coming soon.
> 
> That being said, I have virtually everything planned out precisely from this moment forward. I have been envisioning the events to come in my head the moment I started writing this story. All that’s left is to write it :3
> 
> So be prepared, because shit is about to go down.


	30. Allusion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick update for once :3

Byleth hated that Dimitri was going to fight. They were happy, so very happy that he felt well enough to, but that didn’t change the fact that they hated it.

Byleth didn’t know exactly what it was. Was it that teacherly instinct they picked up during their schooling? Was the lack of parenting treatment Jeralt gave them causing them to create their own? 

No, Byleth knew what it was. They were so used to seeing Dimitri helpless, constantly needing their comfort. If Byleth wasn’t there, his ghosts would surely kill him, in Dimitri’s mind. He was so convinced of this just a few week ago. He always feraed that one day, they would scream until his head exploded. Or that he would say something out of line about him and they would kill him despite being nothing. _He was so convinced._ Byleth had to be there to ensure that they wouldn’t.

It was slow, but Dimitri was beginning to grow more independent. He didn’t need Byleth or Dedue to be at his side anymore, although he didn’t mind the company. But he was perfectly capable of taking walks on the monastery grounds alone. He was fine training in the training grounds even when no one else was around. He was able to keep his ghosts at bay even though he had no one else to ward them off.

But It didn’t work all the time. They were fewer, but the scars of Dimitri’s trauma still peaked through. Somedays were better than others; he could go one day without having an episode and then have several the next day. All it took was his ghosts to yell at him too loudly, or something no one else would bat an eye at that would remind him of something Cornelia did to him when he was captive. His panicked states didn’t last as long as they once did, but they were still hard to watch. 

Byleth was just worried that they wouldn’t be there if something like that were to happen on the battlefield.

They secretly hoped that in-between now and Enbarr that something would happen that would prevent Dimitri from going. Maybe Claude would change his mind and tell him not to go. Maybe Dimitri would change his own mind. Maybe he wouldn’t gain enough weight back, which one of the main causes for concerns for a time. Dimitri was still underweight, so Manuela had given him more fattening options to get his weight back up. But even then, he was gaining it back steadily. 

Enbarr was about a week away now. Claude hadn’t changed his mind, and neither had Dimitri. He was still not as heavy as Manuela wanted, but she believed he would be fine as long as he was careful.

Byleth had a feeling they wouldn’t get what they wanted.  
***  
It had been almost two weeks since Dimitri last had a nightmare. It makes sense that one would occur with Enbarr on the horizon. 

When Byleth woke up, he had stopped screaming. Instead, his voice was caught in a harsh whimper, begging for his tormentors to stop. He trembled violently as he was on the verge of waking, but at least he wasn’t activating his Crest.

Byleth managed to wake him up with a light shake of his shoulder. His face was drenched with sweat when he darted up, head looking around the room frantic. He didn’t cry, but his heaving breath was difficult to listen to. 

Cradling him became so easy now. Byleth had their routine. They would slowly guide his head to their chest, which they could only hope would comfort him even though they lacked a heartbeat. They would run one hand through his hair, the other on his back, making circles with their fingers. Sometimes they would catch themselves humming, hoping to soothe Dimitri’s fears with the sound of their voice.

Dimitri had his routine too. His panic attacks became shorter and shorter, but that didn’t make them any easier. Once he had calmed down, he would apologize to Byleth more times than they could count. After that, they would just sit there until Byleth started small talk, hoping to eventually talk him back to sleep.

Tonight, was no different, although Byleth knew Dimitri wouldn’t want to talk about this topic.

“Are you still sure about Enbarr?”

Byleth knew the answer. “I am.” Dimitri’s voice remained confident.

“You know no one will shame you if you change your mind.” Byleth reminded. 

“I know,” Dimitri’s voice was still shaky from the night terror. 

Byleth sighed, something Dimitri noticed. “I want this.” He said. 

“I know.” Byleth mimicked his words. 

Byleth folded their legs on their lap. Their legs dangled off of the bed, barely kicking due in part to their exhaustion. They were so tired tonight, why were they so tired?

They didn’t even notice they yawned until Dimitri pointed it out. “You’ve been hanging out with Linhardt to much, Byleth.”

“Perhaps I have,” they joked.

Dimitri chuckled. “You should go back to bed,” he suggested. “You need your rest.”

“As should you.”

He chuckled again. “I will return to sleep soon, I promise. But you don’t need to stay up with me.”

Byleth was about to protest, but before they could Dimitri had lifted them up. He carried them like a small child, one arm under their legs, the other on their back. He carried them to their bed, promptly tucking them in and patting them on the head.

“Please, get some rest for me, okay?” He asked smiling. “I will join you shortly.”

Byleth wanted to argue, but their eyes were already starting to flutter closed. “Okay…”

And then they fell asleep.

***  
Dimitri wasn’t there when Byleth opened their eyes. 

Although they would never admit it, Dimitri’s constant nightmares really messed up their sleeping schedule. They were waking up every few hours either from his screams or to make sure he wasn’t in the midst of having a nightmare. Byleth was normally really good about staying up long hours, but this was definitely difficult.

Now that Dimitri was sleeping longer, they were thankful. But Byleth’s body hadn’t caught onto it. They still woke up constantly, only to see that he was sound asleep. 

Only this time when they woke up, he wasn’t in the room.

Byleth sat up, rubbing their eyes to make sure they weren’t just dazed and missing him. But his large frame wasn’t present in his bed. 

Dimitri said he would be going to bed shortly, did he not?

Concerned, Byleth went to find him.  
***  
Dimitri couldn’t fall back asleep.

He wouldn’t admit it to Byleth, but this nightmare was the most vivid one in weeks. It felt so real. He wouldn’t be able to shake it easily.

It was still dark outside, but the sun would be rising in a few hours now. He figured that it would be alright if he didn’t go back to sleep tonight. 

At the moment, he was sitting on the deck of the fishing pond. His legs were dangling off of the edge, just barely missing the water below. The aroma of the pond waters was calming to him.

He sat there for a long time, either staring up at the moon or resting his eyes, before he heard someone behind him. He expected it to be Byleth; they probably noticed he wasn’t in the room and came to find him.

But when he turned his head to greet them, he was surprised to see it was Lysithea.

She wasn’t even dressed for bed, clearly showing that she wasn’t even sleeping. She flattened her lips when she made eye contact with Dimitri.

“Hello, Lysithea.” He greeted. “What are you doing up?”

“I could ask you the same.” She said, looking up at the night sky. “I was in the library. Time got away from me. I was just making my way back to my room.”

Dimitri looked back down at the water. “I see.” He didn’t want to keep her here if we was heading to sleep.

“But I was hoping to catch you alone at some point.” Dimitri turned back to face her. “The Professor and Dedue are never not at your side, and when they are, someone else always is. I can never catch you alone. Seems I stuck gold.”

Dimitri hummed with curiosity. “Well, what is it?” He kicked his legs as they hung towards the water.

She didn’t speak at first.

“Dimitri, it’s about what they did to you.”

The kicking stopped.

Lysithea sighed. “I know it’s not pleasant to talk about, but I have to.” She claimed.

Trying to stay calm, Dimitri responded. “What do you wish to ask?”

The small waves filled the silence. 

She sighed once more. “Dimitri, after what those who slither in the dark did to me…” She paused again. “They found out shortly after that their experiments greatly shortened my lifespan.”

_Ah._

“I hate to bring this up, so I am just going to say it.” She huffed. “Did… Did they say anything similar to you?”

Dimitri remembered.

_He had just woken up, but the pain in his chest nearly forced him back to sleep. His whole body ached as he gave harsh breathes, gasping for air._

_A bright light was shined in his face, blinding his only eye. Even if he could move his aching body, he couldn’t. He was strapped down to a metal table with thick leather bands that stretched across his chest, wrists, legs, and forehead. Glancing down at himself briefly, he noticed that the bands were laced with magic, and that he was also naked._

_He knew what the sight meant. He knew exactly what had happened despite his difficulty remembering: he was just experimented on again. But judging by the way his body cried out in pain more than usual, he must have been out for quite a while._

_As he fought the urge to slip back into unconsciousness, the ringing that once filled his ears ceased. What he heard was… unexpected. The people around him, the mages that constantly tortured him with experiments or for their own sick pleasure… they sounded overjoyed._

_“Congratulations!” He heard a few of them say to each other as they shook hands._

_“Just where is Cornelia? She will be thrilled to see this!”_

No… not her…

_“What an incredible success!”_

_As he struggled to keep his eyes open, he saw several mages peer over him, examining every inch of his body. The smiles on their faces were filled with joy but also… they were sinister._

_“Why was I summoned?” Cornelia’s voice rang. Dimitri trembled at the voice._

_“Cornelia! Come look!” One mage shouted._

_Soon, Cornelia was peering over him. Her grin of delight filled Dimitri with dread and fear, but he didn’t have the strength to do anything._

_“After all this time…” She ran her fingers along his naked form. “Have we finally succeeded?”_

_Her fingers stopped. “Have you tested his Crest yet?” She asked._

_“No, we were waiting for you,” a mage responded._

_“Well, hurry up and test it!” She said as she took a step back._

_The next thing Dimitri knew, he felt a piercing shot enter his arm. Suddenly, a burning sensation exploded across his body, begging, **screaming** , as he began to scream himself. Through his blurred vision, he saw several glows appear before him. His Crest was activating, but it looked… different._

_After what felt like an eternity, Dimitri’s Crest activation caused the magical bonds to snap, but it didn’t stop the pain. As he continued to trash, he fell off the table and onto the ground, his body desperately trying to fight off whatever injection they gave him._

_Once the burning had stopped, Dimitri heard Cornelia laughing and the other mages cheering. “It worked!”_

_Dimitri tried desperately to fill his lungs with air._

_“All of our hard work has finally paid off!”_

_Dimitri couldn’t move his body, so Cornelia moved it for him. She lifted his head in her palms, her smile visible through his eyelashes. “Oh, my pet.” She caressed his face. “We have finally succeeded.”_

_As Cornelia lifted his head, strands of Dimitri’s hair fell onto his face._

_But they weren’t the color he remembered._

_Fighting against the pain, Dimitri lifted his hand and grabbed hold of a few strands. His hair was no longer the blonde locks that he inherited from his father._

_But white._

_Once Dimitri had caught on, Cornelia’s grin grew wider. “Congratulations, my pet.” She cackled. “You are now the wielder of a major Crest of Blaidydd and a minor Crest of Serios.”_

_Dimitri wanted to throw up._

_Cornelia dropped his head. He slumped back down to the ground._

_“Well! I think this is time to celebrate, shall we?”_

Blinking away the coming thoughts of torture he went through after, Dimitri continued to look at the water, trying to calm his mind.

Lysithea sighed behind him. He must have not responded for some time, because there was slight irritation in her voice. “Dimitri…” Her voice was calm. “They told me I have five years to live at most. Are you in the same situation I am in?”

Her repeating the question didn’t make it easier to answer.

“I am.”

He didn’t want to admit it to anyone. Once he began to recover, everyone was so happy… He didn’t want to take that away from them. But since Lysithea was in a similar situation, he had to say it to her.

He was dying.

But part of him was happy to get it off his chest. He just had to make sure Lysithea wouldn’t say anything so no one else would find out.

What he didn’t know that was Byleth was listening. They hid behind the bushes leading to the greenhouse, hands clasped over their mouth.

It was hard to hold back the tears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof.


	31. passion.

Byleth didn’t get the chance to confront Dimitri that morning.

They wanted to confront him on the dock right then and there, but they didn’t have the willpower to do so. How could they when they had just found out Dimitri was dying?

Part of Byleth wanted to slap themselves for not suspecting it. They knew what the case was for Lysithea, they should have expected the same for him. But because state Dimitri was initially in when he first arrived and the healing, both mentally and physically, he had to go through, it was something that slipped their mind.

He never returned to the room that night. Byleth would have tracked him down as soon as the sun rose, but they had a dozen meetings to go to that morning. Unlike other meetings, where most of their former students were present, all these meetings were for more minor things in the grand scheme of the war. Really the only person at these meetings Byleth recognized was Claude. Most of the meetings were just to discuss supplies for the coming battle. Part of Byleth wondered why they had to be there, but alas, their march on Enbarr was growing ever closer, so it was something they could not afford to miss. 

By the time their meetings were finished, it was later in the afternoon, the sun just starting to set. Byleth began to search for Dimitri immediately, starting with looking by the dock, but he was no longer there. 

Thankfully they found him rather quickly. Dimitri was standing near the cemetery, overlooking the sky and land below the monastery. He hugged against the short, brick wall to get the best view as he possibly could. 

Slowly, Byleth approached him. They had to confront him on what they overheard last night.

Dimitri noticed their presence right away. “Byleth, hello.” He said, turning to them. He had the smallest smile on his face.

“You weren’t in the room when I woke up,” Byleth started the conversation small.

“My apologies.” Dimitri bowed. “I couldn’t get much sleep last night, so I was wondering the monastery. I should have left a note to inform you.”

“That’s alright,” Byleth sighed. “I’m just being overprotective, is all. How did you spend your day?”

“Just mentally preparing myself, I suppose.” Dimitri claimed. “I was training with Felix and Sylvain earlier. You’ll be happy to hear Sylvain is making more improvements. His arm still isn’t as strong as it once was, but I’m confident he will able to fight alongside us for the battle, so long as he paces himself.”

Byleth smiled. “That’s great news.” It really was. They remembered the night they found Sylvain crying in Ingrid’s arms, calling himself useless for barely being able to hold a lance straight. They were glad he was improving. 

“That’s not the only monumental thing that occurred training today,” Dimitri continued, crossing his arms. “Felix managed to compliment me today. He said it with a scoff, but he said doesn’t think I need to train anymore for the coming battle. He said despite my circumstances, I still prove to be a strong opponent for him.”

Byleth smiled wider. “That’s almost more unbelievable than Sylvain.”

“Isn’t it?” Dimitri said with a slight chuckle. 

“I can’t imagine you spent your whole time training, anything else you did?” Byleth tried to pry him. They hoped Dimitri would just tell them what he said to Lysithea last night instead of them saying that they overheard it.

“I spent some time with Mercedes as well.” Dimitri didn’t budge. “During our school days, she tried to teach me how to sew. I was terrible at it, but she always did her best to teach me. She decided to continue to help me today.”

Dimitri began to dig around in his pocket. “I… I managed to make something. Seems my old habit of breaking needles never went away, so Mercedes had to help me quite a bit.”

Byleth couldn’t help but admire him as he continued to search. The early sunset light made his white hair look radiant. If it wasn’t a representation of the curse he was given, Byleth would say it was beautiful. “What is it?”

“Hold just one moment.” Dimitri continued to search his pocket. Eventually, he found it. “I made this.”

It was an eyepatch. It was crafted with black cloth, delicately sewn together with a matching black thread. Dimitri held it up with both hands, letting it hang between them. He pressed his lips together when presenting it.

“I… I figured…” His voice was shy.

Byleth offered him a smile. “May I?” Dimitri nodded, giving them permission to take it from his hands. 

Holding the eyepatch in their hands made Byleth realize just how carefully made it was. Dimitri must have tried his hardest to sew most of it himself.

Dimitri lowered his head so Byleth could reach. Byleth took the time to look at his right eye socket. The scars still ran deep, but the wounds had all healed. Placing an eyepatch on it wouldn’t irritate the scars, they believed. Slowly, Byleth brought the eyepatch around his eye, knotting it at the back of his head. Byleth did their best to be gentle, worrying that if they weren’t, it would hurt. But if they did hurt him, Dimitri didn’t show it.

Once Byleth finished, Dimitri rose his head. He kept his left eye shut until he stood back at normal height. He blinked, as if waiting for Byleth’s approval or disapproval.

“Well… What do you think?” Dimitri asked meekly. 

Byleth studied his face. The eyepatch covered the majority of his scars, with only a few peeking through underneath. For the most part, it fit perfectly. 

“It fits.” Byleth said. “But truthfully? I don’t think you need it.”

Dimitri gave a half smile, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. “You… You don’t?”

“I just don’t think you need to hide your scars.” Byleth claimed. “But if it makes you comfortable, I think it looks fine.”

“I… I suppose it is cowardly of me, to try and hide it.” Dimitri looked away.

“Oh Dimitri, that not what I was trying to imply-“ 

“I know,” Dimitri looked back to them. “Perhaps… perhaps one day, I will feel comfortable showing my scars more. But for right now…”

“That’s okay, Dimitri.” Byleth reassured him. “Take as much time as you need.”

Dimitri’s lips pressed together once more. “Byleth… If-If it’s alright. May I… May I hold your hands?”

Byleth was taken aback by the question. Up until this point, Byleth was always the one to take Dimitri’s hands within their own. He was never the one to act first, likely fearing he would harm them if he did. But… it was a welcomed surprise.

Byleth nodded before offering their hands. Dimitri took both of them, holding them together between his own. 

“I-I never got the chance to tell you before,” Dimitri stuttered, blushing. “But your hands are so warm.”

Byleth raised an eyebrow. “Are they?”

“Yes.” He said simply. “Ever since you first reached out for them in that cell… I’ve been trying to recall if they always have been.”

Byleth began to blush now. Dimitri looked so at peace whenever he held their hands. The sight made them so joyful.

But as sweet as this moment was, Byleth couldn’t let it continue. They had to get him to tell them.

“Dimitri, you know you can tell me anything.” They moved their fingers within his hands, allowing them to intertwine with his. “You don’t need to keep any secrets from me, you really shouldn’t. You can’t keep yourself bottled up; I will always give you my ears if you need to get something off of your chest.”

Dimitri released their hands and let his own drop to his side. He took one small step back, staring at them with his one blue eye. Byleth knew at that moment: Dimitri knew what they were trying to do. He knew that Byleth was aware of the truth.

“So, you know then.” Was all Dimitri could say. Byleth didn’t respond, only stared at him. “That… makes things complicated.”

“How so?” Byleth asked with slight attitude in their voice. 

Dimitri paused. “I didn’t wish to tell you.”

“You didn’t want to tell me,” Byleth repeated. “So what? You were going to run off and die and then leave me wondering what happened to you?”

Dimitri looked away. He didn’t say anything and that told Byleth all they needed to know. He was planning on doing just that.

“How could you?” Byleth yelled. “How could you even _think_ about doing that?”

“Byleth…” He tried to calm them, but they would not listen.

“How could you just decide to go off and die? After everything we have been through, how could you?” Byleth felt their face heat up.

“It’s not like I have a choice.” Dimitri was calm despite all of this. “You can’t fix me, Byleth.”

“But I will!” Byleth stomped forward. “I am going to tell you the same thing I told Lysithea: you’re not dying. I am going to find a way to undo what has been done to you.”

“For Lysithea, maybe you can,” Dimitri responded. “But I won’t have that luxury.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Byleth was starting to become furious.

Dimitri didn’t say anything. “Tell me, Dimitri!” Byleth demanded.

“Lysithea has more time than me.”

His words stung. Byleth took a step back and just stared at him, dumbfounded. 

Dimitri sighed. “Those who slither in the dark… they never intended to keep me alive for long. That way, if I didn’t kill you like they wanted me to, I wouldn’t be a lingering threat.”

Byleth took in a sharp breath. “How long?”

Dimitri shut his eye. “A year. Less, really.”

Byleth gasped before bringing their hand to cover their mouth. A year. Less than a year. That was all he had. As if the torture they put him through wasn’t enough, those who slither in the dark didn’t even give him the time to heal after what they did. Their legs shook as they tried to blink away the tears forming in their eyes.

“It’s okay, Byleth.” Dimitri reached out for their hands. “I have accepted it. Things are better this way-“

Byleth pushed away his hands. “How could you even say something like that? You would just abandon me? Your friends? Your Kingdom?”

“I was never cut out to be King,” Dimitri claimed “The people of Faerghus deserve better. My friends deserve better… You deserve better.”

“I don’t want anything better than what I have.” Byleth meant it.

Dimitri shut his eyes once more. “Byleth… please don’t make this any harder than it needs to be.”

“No! I am not giving up on you!” Byleth watched Dimitri as he turned and rested his hands on the brick wall. “I don’t care what it takes! I will save you!”

“Byleth stop…”

“I won’t rest until I undo what those dastards did to you! Whether you’re supposed to die a year from now, in a month, tomorrow even, I will save you. And that is a promise!”

“Stop!” Byleth flinched as Dimitri’s Crest activated, his hands crushing the bricks that he once rested his hands on. Dimitri stepped away from the wall, staring with one tearful eye at what he had just done.

Byleth stopped talking.

“Don’t you see yet, Byleth?” Dimitri cried to them. “I am not worth saving. I am nothing more than a monster, being held back by nothing but the weak willpower I have… Even if I was worth it, you wouldn’t have time. Lysithea has a chance, you can save her, but not me.”

Dimitri looked away from Byleth again. “Call me selfish, a coward, whatever you wish. But that is the truth.”

Mournfully, Dimitri continued to stare off into the distance, this time with his hands at his side. 

It was hard for Byleth to find the words to say after all of that. Despite disagreeing with nearly everything he had to say about himself, Byleth had to admit he was right about one thing. They didn’t have a lot of time. With Lysithea, they at least had at least five years to figure out some way to undo the Crest experimentation done to them. But Dimitri… He had less than a fifth of that time. 

But Byleth refused give up. They were going to do everything in their power to ensure that Dimitri lived. After everything he’s been through, he deserved it. He deserved to see the end of the war. He deserved to give his people the King they wish for. He deserved to grow old and die happy. 

It would be difficult, Byleth knew, but they would do it. They already knew that Linhardt would stay up forever if he had to help them. Hannaman would help as well. Hell, even if they knew nothing about Crests, Byleth knew their students would stop at nothing to find a way.

The only one they had to convince was Dimitri.

Byleth stepped next to the prince, grabbing his hand gently. “I know… I know what our chances are.” Byleth had to admit to him. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t try. I will stop at nothing to save you, Dimitri.”

Dimitri furthered his gaze from Byleth, but they continued speaking regardless. “I know you don’t think so, but you are worth it. You are worth at least trying to save, and I know I’m not the only one that believes that.”

“Please Byleth, stop this nonsense.” Dimitri tried to walk away, but Byleth gripped his hand tighter. 

“What is it going to take me to convince you?” Byleth tried not to sound angry, but it may have come out that way.

“You can’t convince me!” Dimitri sounded angry as he pushed Byleth’s hand out of his own. “I’m sorry Byleth. I know what you desire. I know you want me to live out my life as a happy man. But it is impossible. I have no chance of living. It’s not that I don’t wish to live, I am just accepting reality! And you are going to have to face that reality at some point too!”

Byleth didn’t know what else to say. Clearly, they could not convince Dimitri. They could not convince him through words.

So they kissed him.

They pulled his head down by cupping his cheeks, forcing his lips down to their level. Even so, Byleth had to stand on their toes to reach them, but they didn’t care. All they could think about was kissing him, letting their lips finally meet one another. 

Byleth could feel Dimitri’s face heat up underneath their hands. Clearly, he was not expecting that. Byleth kept their eyes closed, so they did not notice, but Dimitri’s eye was wide with shock. But as Byleth continued to lock their lips with his, eventually, Dimitri closed his eyes, accepting Byleth’s show of love.

When they finally separated, the two let out a huff. Their faces were only inches apart. They continued to stare at each other, their eyes not leaving one another’s face. 

“You’re not going to die, alright?” Byleth told him.

Dimitri bit his lip. 

“Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It finally happened .O.
> 
> Hope that it was worth the wait. This chapter has been sitting in my drafts pretty much ever since this story started, so it’s been a long time coming.
> 
> But really now, we are in the endgame. I am thinking there will be six chapters left, maybe one less or one more. Pretty much all of them will contain a lot of fight scenes, so they may take a while to come out because of that. But know that they are coming, and that it is going to be one wild ride from here on out.


	32. fragment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t ask me why this chapter is so long. It just happened o.O

They kissed him.

_They kissed him._

It had been days since it happened, but Dimitri could still not believe it. His beloved Byleth, someone he had loved for so long, _kissed him._

It was a shame it had to happen under such circumstances.

He had admitted to Byleth he was dying. They insisted that he would live, that they would insure he would survive. He still didn’t believe in that reality, but he agreed to it because _they kissed him._

And now, the fated day had arrived.

Dimitri had to have Byleth help them get on his armor. The shining, white armor Rodrigue had left him was stunning, but complex. The amount of pieces felt like they were never-ending. The chest plate and shoulder pieces were particularly large, intentionally to better protect important organs and bones. And then there was the cape. _Dear Goddess the cape._ Dimitri had worn a rather extravagant one before he was held captive, but this took it to a whole other level. The furs on this cape were so large Dimitri was sure that if it weren’t for his monstrous strength he would have been crushed beneath them.

But between the two of them, they managed to get Dimitri ready. Once they had, Dimitri turned to a mirror located in Byleth’s room to better look at himself. Aside from the armor, Felix had pulled his hair back into a tight, half-up, half-down ponytail to prevent his hair from going into his singular eye. 

The sight, needless to say, left him without any words.

“You’re speechless,” Byleth noticed. “I assume that is a good sign?”

Dimitri gave a light smile. “If it weren’t for the hair and eyepatch, I could be mistaken for my father.”

Byleth’s lips flattened. “Is that okay?”

He nodded. “It’s like I am taking a piece of him with me to battle.” 

Byleth seemed to be worried that being dressed like his father would cause him distress, as his father had been haunting him. But it was quite the opposite, actually; Dimitri was happy to resemble him. “I suppose you could say having Felix fighting alongside me is like Glenn coming to battle with me as well.”

Byleth smiled. “And what of your stepmother?”

Dimitri had to think about it. Who was worthy enough to take the place of his stepmother, whom he loved so dearly?

“I suppose… You would be most accurate.” He claimed. “You’ve cared for me so much over these past few months… Just as she had. You’re motherly like her.”

Dimitri stopped.

He had only realized what an idiot he was for saying that after the words left his mouth. The two of them had just kissed not long ago and now he was comparing them to his _mother?!_

“I mean-“ He tried to recover, clearly flustered. “I-I didn’t mean to imply-I suppose… You ARE caring, but in NO WAY motherly-“

Byleth kissed him on the cheek before he could say anything else. He ceased speaking.

“It’s alright, Dimitri.” They said with a chuckle. 

Why did he have to be so damn flustered?

Byleth’s smile was short lived as they went to grab his hand. “Are you ready?”

Dimitri shut his eye. He would never be ready, he knew that. But he nodded anyway. Gripping their hand just a little tighter, the two left the room and went to meet up with the army.

Enbarr awaited them.  
***  
The trip to Enbarr took several days, but each step taken filled Dimitri with more anxiety. He knew he was ready; well, ready as he’ll ever be. He knew he would never fully be ready to face Edelgard, but he knew that he didn’t have a choice.

Byleth didn’t leave his side the entirety of the trip. He lost track of how many times they asked him if he was sure he wanted to do this. He always responded the same thing every time, but that didn’t stop them from asking. 

They were worried, Dimitri understood that. But he still wished they could have made things easier. He already had the hardest time convincing them to take the Sword of Serios, a parting gift from the Death Knight. It was insisted by Byleth that he take both the Sword and Shield, since he now had the crest that aligned with them. But Dimitri didn’t need the sword, he was fine with just his lance and the shield that Byleth insisted he take so much. It took heavy convincing, but Byleth eventually came to call the Sword of Serios their own, at least until the Sword of the Creator was returned to them. 

Finally, Enbarr was in their sights.

And it was then when they received the worst news Dimitri could get.

They sent a scout ahead to look over the battlefield. The Empire was already trying to prevent entry to the castle, which was to be expected. Claude had theorized in an earlier meeting that Hubert would probably be the last line of defense, which was definitely the most likely. When the scout returned, Claude asked if his theory was correct.

“Actually… It’s not Sir.” The messenger said. Claude raised an eyebrow at this statement. “It looks like Cornelia is leading the last line of defense.”

Dimitri’s heart dropped.

He could have dealt with Hubert. Hell, he could have dealt with any of the Black Eagles students. But Cornelia? The one who mindlessly tortured and experimented on him for months? 

He felt Byleth grip his arm as he tried to hide his trembling. “Dimitri.” They breathed his name.

Dimitri didn’t know what else to do other than laugh. “It just had to be her,” he remarked.

Claude sighed upon hearing this. He had been rooting for Dimitri ever since he stated his intentions of wanting to join the fight. Claude really thought that everything would go over fine, but this was concerning him, at the very least. He didn’t have a choice but to step in. “Byleth, make sure you stay with him at all times,” he stated. “Dimitri, I don’t want you going near her, alright? Leave Cornelia to us.”

Dimitri didn’t respond. The look on Claude’s face screamed regret at what he just said. “Listen, I don’t want treat you like you can’t handle yourself. I know you’ve been doing everything you can to prepare for this. But facing her… That is a risk I am unwilling to take.”

Claude said a few more minor things before ordering everyone to get ready for battle. “Dimitri,” Byleth’s voice spoke as soon as Claude left. “You don’t have to do this.”

Byleth really didn’t want him to fight, did they?

“You know I have to.” Dimitri replied. 

Everything else that happened was really a blur. He remembered gripping Areadhar tightly as Claude gave a final, moral boosting speech. He remembered Byleth’s fingers intertwining with his. His comrades wishing him luck before the battle. Felix reminding him of the words he said after they were training that day: _“I say make them pay for it.”_

Those words rang in his head as the battle began.

Blood splattered, magic attacks flew from one side of the battlefield to the other, bodies littered the floor. It was war; something that Dimitri had not experienced in a long time, but he wish he didn’t have to witness it.

But he bore through it. He cut his way through Empire and those who slither in the dark soldiers. Whatever he missed, Byleth picked off for him. They worked perfectly in sync, Areadhar and the Sword of Serios fighting side by side with one another. Dimitri even had managed to take Felix’s advice: he used his Crest against them. He fought against them with the very power he was cursed with, making a statement that he wasn’t afraid to become the monster they had created.

So far, all was going well.

It was when the end of the battle approached that things began to turn.

As they fought through the streets of Enbarr, casualties were becoming more common. Great, monstrous Demonic Beasts emerged, the bird like creatures threatening them with every step they took. Dimitri was just thankful that it seemed they wouldn’t have to face any of the Black Eagles students just yet, because if any of them were here, he could only imagine how many lives could have been lost.

They just had to end this battle fast.

But things turned difficult when Byleth and Dimitri were separated.

Dimitri honestly didn’t even remember how exactly it happened; he was too pumped up on adrenaline that he didn’t notice. They were fighting one of the Demonic Beasts, its large wings creating wind gusts that nearly sent him back. Then, all of a sudden, Byleth was nowhere to be found.  
And then Dimitri found himself against the one person he was told not to face. He found himself alone against the one person he feared more than anything in his life. 

In his desperate search for Byleth, their beloved Byleth, he found the one person he didn’t want to see. 

Cornelia.

Or perhaps, she found him. She laughed mechanically when she spotted him, almost excitedly. She had found the one person she was hoping to see during this fight. “My, I had heard the rumors that you were here, I never thought them to be true.” Dimitri recalled her saying through his ringing ears.

He wanted to run. He wanted to cower and hide.

But he wouldn’t.

He wouldn’t let her win, not again.

_He was going to make her pay for it._

“Oh, how I missed you my little-“

He didn’t let her finish. He jumped at her, slamming his lance so hard into the ground that it split the earth in two, cracking the foundation beneath their feet with the activation of his Crest. She barely managed to stumble back before he was on her again, swinging Areadhar violently in her direction, giving her no other option than to dodge his continuous attacks.

Eventually she got away from him and began to fire attacks of her own, using powerful dark magic that emanated black, harrowing smoke. Aside from a singe on his cape, he managed to dodge everyone, slowly closing the distance between him and Cornelia once more. She was not about to let his swings get near her again, however, and she warped away just before his lance connected with her. 

Looking around panicked, but remaining his composure, he didn’t know where she was until he felt a magic attack hit his shoulder blade. The attack was mostly protected by his massive armor, but it still sent him tumbling forward. Before Cornelia could hit him again, he turned around and used the Shield of Serios to block the remaining attacks. He saw now that she was standing on top of a nearby building, a home once used by an Empire citizen. When her attacks finally ceased, Dimitri made a risky move and flung the Shield of Serios at her.

The shield connected with her stomach, Dimitri hearing her ribs crack from the impact. As she stumbled forward, Dimitri once again closed the distance, bringing his lance up to attack her once again. She once again barely dodged the attack through her erupting pain, but the house she stood on top of was not so lucky. With Areadhar’s power and the major Crest of Blaidydd, the house crumbled down, Cornelia being forced to jump off the building, stumbling onto the ground below.

Cornelia grunted, her body beginning to shift shortly afterwards. Before she could move any further, Dimitri had his lance pointed at her heart.

The witch did not flinch as Dimitri pushed his lance closer to her. “It’s over Cornelia,” he warned. “You would do well to give up.”

Cornelia chucked. “Well, isn’t this something: you giving me orders instead of the other way around.”

“Save your breath.” Dimitri glared at her. “You can’t wound me again. Not anymore. I don’t fear you any longer.”

Cornelia chucked. “Is that so? Then why are you trembling?”

Dimitri was hoping that she didn’t notice, but of course she did. She had enjoyed torturing Dimitri every chance she could get. At this point, she knew exactly what to say and do to make Dimitri waver.

But she would not make him falter, not again.

Gripping Areadhar tightly, he steadied himself. “You won’t deter me again, Cornelia. You’re rein of terror is over, starting today.”

Dimitri brought his arm back, ready to finish it, but Cornelia had one last thing to say. “Go ahead and end it then. But I will be taking information about your stepmother with me.”

Dimitri stopped. His eye broadened. The trembling returned. 

She was trying to trick him again. She was going to say something obscure to try and get the upper hand. He couldn’t fall for it.

But then why…?

“W-What are you talking about?”

Cornelia’s evil grin appeared. “Oh, you mean you haven’t figured it out already? I’m surprised, I always thought Gilbert or that Rodrigue would figure it out.”

“Tell me!” He pushed his lance closer.

Cornelia laughed. “Your stepmother didn’t die that day. In fact, she is the reason that day exists in the history books.”

Dimitri inhaled as he tried to keep his lance steady, but failing. “She was so desperate to return to the Empire, you know. All she wanted to do was reunite with her little Edelgard, so much so that she was willing to kill for it. So, she allied herself with us, and we made everything happen.”

Cornelia saw that she got him and continued. “She didn’t die that day. Instead, she dirtied her hands, playing her role in killing everyone that day, all save for you, that is. How clever you must have been to avoid death.”

Dimitri gritted his teeth. “You’re lying.” He could barely manage. 

“Oh, come now Dimitri, you know it to be true.” Dimitri didn’t notice, but space was growing between her and Areadhar’s tip. “They never found her body remember? And besides, do you really think that after all we have been through together that I would lie? We were so close, don’t you recall? You were… are my precious pet after all.”

Dimitri couldn’t breathe. He felt like he was going to vomit. He couldn’t stop shaking. Despite his efforts, Cornelia had him again. She might as well have thrown him back into his cell. She might as well have begun torturing him again. She might as well have begun experimenting on him again. 

Cornelia noticed this, and began mechanically laughing. “There it is! There is the panic in your eye that I missed so much!” Her grin grew. “Oh, I remember when I first saw that look…”

Dimitri remembered it too. The moment she broke him. The moment she turned the angry, revenge filled Dimitri into the fearful and weak one that existed now.

_Cornelia had him alone, but the room might as well have been full of people. She hardly gave him a chance to breathe with all of the torment she was putting him through._

_He was chained to a chair as she tortured him. As she beat him senseless. He wanted to kill her. He patiently waited for the moment she would slip up, draw herself too close to him. Perhaps he would bite her finger off, he had done that to one of his tormentors before. Or maybe she would get too close and he could headbutt her. In the days (weeks? Months?) since he was kept here, he had managed to harm some of the mages that drew too close. But Cornelia was being careful._

_And he was so weak… He could hardly keep his head up. This was the first time Cornelia had decided to torture him alone, and she was making sure it was memorable._

_But Dimitri refused to break. He wouldn’t._

_Cornelia punched him again, her nails digging into his skin. As his head bobbed to the side, he spit out blood that had been forming in his mouth. “You sure aren’t making this any fun.” She commented._

_She lifted his head up by gripping his hair. She stared at him… and he hated it. So much so that after a while, he spit in her face._

_She dropped his head as he wiped her face, but he managed to keep his head up this time. He wanted to see her angry. He wanted to show her that she couldn’t turn this monster into her play toy._

_He expected her to be furious, to beat him even more then she already had, but she didn’t. “Is this really how you treat your superiors?” She flung the spit filled blood off of her hand. “Did you treat your Professor this way?”_

_Dimitri growled. “Don’t you dare speak their name.” He warned._

_Cornelia raised an eyebrow before grinning. Just what was she thinking?_

_She walked closer to him. “My, you must miss them, don’t you?” She cackled. “Shame they had to die.”_

_“Don’t!” Dimitri warned again. His yell failed him as his voice cracked from the strain._

_“You adored them so much… I can only imagine how difficult it has been without them.” Cornelia drew ever closer. Dimitri was waiting for her to draw nearer. She was getting so close…_

_“Perhaps I can make things easier for you then?” She was getting so close now. Any moment now he would strike-_

_His eye dilated._

_Cornelia was no longer standing in front of him now. Her ugly form was replaced. It was no longer Cornelia in front of him._

_But the Professor._

_Dimitri could only stare at them. He knew it was Cornelia and not his Professor in front of him. But they looked so real. She had copied their form perfectly. His Professor… His beautiful Professor… Byleth._

_“What’s the matter, Dimitri?” She even mimicked their voice perfectly. “At a loss for words for your beloved Professor?”_

_Dimitri only now realized that Cornelia was so very close to him. He could feel her breath she was so close._

_But with her looking like that… he didn’t have the strength to attack._

_She laughed. “What… No resistance? No fighting back?” She mocked him, laughing under her breath. “Can’t harm your Professor?”_

_Dimitri tried to look away, but Cornelia forced him to look back. She gripped his cheeks, drawing blood that soaked her nails. His eyes only widened further._

_He was shaking. He knew it wasn’t his Professor (or was it?) but he couldn’t bring himself to hurt her looking like that._

_Cornelia laughed. “My, my. Dimitri, what’s wrong?” She kept their voice. “You look petrified.”_

It wasn’t them. It wasn’t them. **It was them.** It wasn’t them. It wasn’t them. It wasn’t them.

_“Oh my pet, now this…” She caressed his face. This was the first time she called him by that name. “This will be fun.”_

_And then **his Professor** tortured him. They tortured him in ways unimaginable. _

_They broke him._

Dimitri’s lance fell to the floor. His hands were against his mouth, trying to prevent the vomit that was rising in his throat from coming out. He wanted to cower, to hide, but he couldn’t move. He just begged, begged that everything would be over quickly.

Cornelia had hate radiating in her eyes. “Oh, Serios must have blessed me to allow me to see it again… Before I KILL YOU!”

Cornelia charged at him, dagger in her hand, ready to strike. Dimitri didn’t move.

Most of what happened after that was a blur to Dimitri. He saw a figure step in front of him. They managed to stab Cornelia through the chest before she got a change to kill them. Dimitri saw the flash of red blood pouring from her mouth before she fell to the floor, finally slain. 

Byleth breathed heavily, as if from relief. Immediately after, they tried to comfort Dimitri, but the prince was still in a panicked daze. Before Byleth even made physical contact with him, he fell to his knees, the ground shaking as he did. He then bent over, beginning to the vomit despite his efforts to hold back.

He never vomited blood before now.

Tears filled his eyes as he saw the blood-filled vomit come out of his throat. He could hardly breathe through the breaks of his vomit, and it was made even more difficult by Cornelia’s words. All he could do was shake, shake violently on his hands and knees. 

He could not tell if Byleth was still by him, but he could feel someone rubbing their hand along his back. But their touch couldn’t calm him now.

Once his vomit had ceased, the heaving in his chest did not leave so easily. He felt like a completely helpless animal, left only to look at the pile of red below him. 

“Dimitri…” They heard Byleth voice for the first time. No matter what they tried, Byleth could not calm him. Regardless, they continued to massage their hand along his back.

Dimitri couldn’t keep doing this. He couldn’t keep relying on Byleth to calm him. He had to compose himself. He had to come back to reality on his own.

“I’m fine.” He lied. He didn’t tell the truth, and he knew Byleth would not fall for it. But it was worth a shot.

“You’re not.” He knew it.

“I am.” He insisted, wiping his blood-filled vomit from his lips. He tried to control his voice, tried not to sound panicked. Slowly, he tried to rise to his feet. He had to look strong for them, he kept reminding himself. But the shaking in his legs did not let him. Byleth saw this coming and grabbed him before he could fall back down to the ground. They caught him, guiding him gently to the floor below.

“You don’t need to be strong for me Dimitri.” How could they always read his mind?

Dimitri looked at Byleth.

Were they always so beautiful?

Blinking, Dimitri inhaled sharply. “My… my stepmother…”

“I know,” Byleth said, affirming that they heard what Cornelia said.

“How… How could she?” Dimitri wiped away the tears in his eyes.

Byleth flattened their lips. “I wish I had an answer for you.” They admitted. 

“I thought… that she loved me.” Dimitri really thought that she did. He loved his stepmother so much, like they were related by blood. Because his love was so strong, he only assumed that the same could be said the other way around. But it seemed that this was not the case.

Byleth rubbed their hand on Dimitri’s back. “I… I want to believe that she did.” Dimitri stared at them. “I can’t speak for her, but I think she did love you Dimitri. I think she just loved others too and was caught in a difficult decision. I don’t agree with her actions but… I can understand her grief.”

Dimitri felt like vomiting again. Byleth was right. 

“I suppose…” Slowly, he tried to stand up again, Byleth assisting him. He did not fail to stand this time, although his legs were still shaking. When he finally mustered up the courage, he looked at Cornelia’s lifeless body, slowly bleeding out before him. 

Byleth removed their hand from his back and intertwined their fingers with his. “It’s okay, Dimitri.” Their fingers touched his knuckles. “She isn’t going to hurt you again.”

If only that were true. Dimitri knew that Cornelia’s ghost would come to haunt him as well one day. He would probably hear her laughing throughout the night, tormenting him even after her life was over.

But… he would live through it.

With Byleth by his side, he could survive anything.

“Dimitri?” Byleth gripped his hand tighter. He didn’t realize how long he had stood there silently until they pointed it out.

Dimitri hugged them.

The grip seemed to catch them by surprise, but they hugged back. All the fear that Dimitri could crush them with his Crest was gone. He would control it, and he would savor this moment.

“Byleth I…” Dimitri trailed off.

Byleth hummed against his chest.

“I am going to live.” 

He was bold with his statement.

When Byleth made eye contact with him, he continued. “I am going to survive. I will end this war. I am going to find a cure for what those who slither in the dark did to me. For Lysithea too. Once that is done, I am going to live out the rest of my life as happy as I possibly can… with you.”

Byleth smiled. Dimitri blushed. “That is…” He was embarrassed. “If you will allow it…”

Byleth chuckled. “Of course.”

He kissed them. 

He was overjoyed when they kissed back. He loved them so much… Despite his cruelty, they stuck by his side. They pulled him out of his darkness and back into the light. He could thank them every second for the rest of his life and it would never be enough.

The least he could do was live for them.

When they stopped kissing, Dimitri chuckled, and hugged them once more. “Byleth…” He ran his fingers through their hair. They hummed against his chest.

“My Beloved…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For clarification, Dimitri calling Byleth “motherly” is not revealing their gender. Dimitri was flustered mostly in part to him not wanting to offend them, as Byleth identifies as genderless and calling them “motherly” assumes they are female. So please, don’t let them being called “motherly” change your view of what gender you view them as.
> 
> I also made the decision to keep the torture that really broke Dimitri up to imagination. Maybe I will go into my interpretation of what happened one day, but I am going to leave it open because there is just… sooooo much whump I want to shove in there that I won’t be able to fit it all. So please, imagine what Cornelia did to poor little Dimitri on your own :)
> 
> Anyway, so this chapter took a little bit to come out because I have been writing future chapters. I recently saw My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising (Which was SO GOOD BTW PLEASE GO SEE IT HAWKS WAS IN IT OMG) and was really inspired to write fight scenes so I started writing some of those. So hopefully chapters will come out quicker? But school is still a thing so it really depends. Either way, please look forward to it!


	33. The Beginning of the End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU GUYS I CAN’T BELIEVE IT I FREE PULLED DIMITRI ON THE 20TH WEEKLY REVIVAL BANNER AND HE WAS +ATTACK. I ACTUALLY CRIED MY BOY FINALLY CAME HOME OH MY GOD.

Dimitri was fine. He had survived his encounter with Cornelia. He was fine. Cornelia was dead.

But regardless of the outcome, Byleth was filled with an overwhelming anxiety. _They should have been there._ They should have never let things get so bad.

Byleth never should have been separated from Dimitri. One moment, the two of them were fighting a Demonic Beast. The next, Byleth had been caught up with some mages, believing that Dimitri was still with them. But the moment they had slayed the mages, they saw he was not there. 

When Byleth found Dimitri, he was in the middle of an anxiety attack. Cornelia had him trapped, and she was finally about to kill him. If Byleth had shown up any later, she would have. 

And it made Byleth feel all the more guilty. They still couldn’t believe that they had made it in time. If they were a second late, it would have been over. And they hated even thinking of that reality where they didn’t make it in time.

They just wanted to hold him, to reassure that he was still here, that he was alive. And he did hold them, for a while. His body still trembled out of fear from what just happened, but the worst of his panic was over. When he eventually let go, all Byleth wanted to do was continue to hold him. But they knew they were in the middle of a battle, the final battle hopefully, so they settled for holding him later.

After Cornelia’s death, the battle within the Empire was all but won. The battle ended quickly after that, but casualties were not kept to a minimum. As much as Byleth hated thinking this way, they were at least thankful that their students and closest allies were safe. 

But there were still soldiers that lost their lives. There were soldiers that would not be returning home after today. Families they could not frolic to once it was all over. Eyes that would not see the new Fodlan that they set out to create.

And Byleth hated that.

Before heading into the Empire’s castle, the army managed to regroup for a final time. Needless to say, Claude was not happy to find out that Dimitri had fought Cornelia; disobeying the one rule that the Master Tactician gave to the prince. 

“One job,” Byleth recalled Claude saying. “I gave you one order to obey and you disobeyed it. If Byleth were not there, you would have been killed, which is something we cannot afford.”

Much to Byleth’s relief, however, Claude didn’t waste too much time scolding Dimitri. And truthfully, Byleth doubted anyone in the army could blame him. It was clear just from looking at him that Dimitri was still reeling from the encounter with Cornelia. The deadpanned look in his eye… The last time Byleth saw that was when they had first rescued him, when he was still petrified and filled with trauma. 

They could only hope that it would go away soon. The final battle was upon them.

Even as they approached the doors to the castle, Dimitri was still dazed from what occurred. He at least seemed to get better, but he wasn’t back at one hundred percent yet.

They couldn’t let that stand. 

They gripped his hand, feeling his grip follow shortly after. Slowly, he rose their hand to his mouth, kissing their knuckles tenderly. He smiled once his lips parted from them. 

“Let’s win this, Byleth.” He finally said. 

“It’s almost over.” Byleth hoped those words would give him some peace. “Are you ready?”

Dimitri smiled genuinely. He was still dazed from what had just occurred, but Byleth knew he would be alright. “I am.” He said with confidence.

“Alright everyone!” Claude’s voice cut through the army like a sword. “Within this castle is our final battle, give it everything you’ve got!”

The army erupted into screams. After this battle, everything would be over.

_They had to win this._

Not just for Fodlan, but for each other.

The doors opened and the final battle began. 

***  
Thales stared at his prized creation, dwelling in his presence for the short amount of time he knew he had left.

But he was content with leaving the plane of the living soon. He wouldn’t get to see the world that his creation would bring, but he knew what would happen once it was released. His creation would do exactly what those who slither in the dark set out to do: bring an end to the goddess, the church, and the very country they set out to protect.

Soon it would all be over. Carefully, he placed his fingers on the large, metal tub containing his creation, barely feeling worthy to be in his presence. When Shambhala began to fall, he knew there was nothing he could do to stop it. But what he did know was that he could not let his creation fall with it. He had spent too long working, slaving over it that he couldn’t afford to let it all go to waste. 

The beloved creation… he was just about ready to transform now. In his glass container, he continued to trash violently, his body convulsing and changing right before his very eyes. He looked… angry to be kept trapped in there, but Thales knew that when he would be released, he would set out and do what had to be done. 

With two Swords of the Creator in hand, he would finish what had to be done.

And with his Crests…

“Thales.”

Myson’s voice cut through the mesmerized state of Thales, convincing the supreme leader of those who slither in the dark to turn around. He appeared just as confident as Thales did, although he didn’t seem as proud of their creates success.

“The Kingdom’s army has entered the castle. I suspect they will reach the throne room swiftly.” Myson explained.

“Cornelia failed us, did she?” Thales was surprised with the revelation. “So, the Beast Prince still lives, does he?”

“He does,” Myson confirmed. “He is fighting alongside the army as we speak.”

Thales scoffed at the admission. That dreaded prince had managed to escape death from them far too many times. Not even after all the rigorous experimentation done to him did he manage to draw his last breath. Cornelia should have been the one to finish it; she had formed a bond with that beast unlike anyone else had. He feared her. She had hosted the group that did the _unimaginable_ to him, and she had done the majority of it herself. The fact that she wasn’t able to finish the job disappointed Thales deeply.

But that didn’t matter. It didn’t matter how strong they had made the Beast Prince. His beloved creation would finish the job.

Even if he didn’t, there would be no doubt the Beast would die shortly after anyway. His experimentation was done accurately but sloppily, done so due to the shortened time they had to work with. At most he would live a few more months, if he was lucky. If his creation didn’t finish it, which he doubted, it wouldn’t matter anyway.

“I see,” Thales spoke after much time pondering. “No matter, it will all be over soon.”

“Indeed,” Myson agreed. “Those of us remaining and myself will assist in finishing the job. We will make victory ever easier for our King.”

_Our King._ Until he awoke, Thales didn’t feel ready to call him by that name. But soon… Soon he would awaken. Soon, Thales would have the honor of watching his creation do everything he had set out to do. 

“Godspeed.” Was all Thales had left to say.

Myson vanished quickly after, but Thales didn’t see him off. All he could do was stare at his creation; relish in these final moments with him. 

When his creation would awaken, there would be no escaping it. Thales would die right here and now, his final job being to awaken his creation when the time came.

Smiling ever so slightly, but cruelly, Thales touched the glass containing his creation.

Soon, the King of Liberation will walk free once more.

But it would be far worse than the King of old. 

And it would be unlike anything Fodlan had ever seen.  
***  
Banging, screaming, blasting magic, screeching wyverns.

Those noises were all Edelgard heard outside her throne room. Here she was, backed into the furthest corner she possibly could be in. She never expected the Kingdom Army to rise to the powerhouse that they did. But here they were, giving her and her last line of defense their last chance to turn the war in their favor.

At the very least, she was happy that these remaining moments were with her closest allies; the ones that were still alive, that is. 

“I just heard word from Myson,” Hubert suddenly said. Due to his intense ability in dark magic, Hubert was able to communicate with members of those who slither in the dark in ways Edelgard didn’t even understand. He was able to give the best updates about the war as humanly possible. “The Kingdom Army is continuing to advance; they should be approaching any moment now.”

Edelgard sighed. So, this was it; this really was their last chance. This was her last chance to protect the Fodlan that she set out to create.

“Oh Edie, have some confidence,” she heard Dorothea say. Turning her head slightly, Edelgard made eye contact with the famed singer, her bright eyes having dulled as a result of the war. But regardless, her eyes were still the brightest thing Edelgard had ever seen. “With all of us together, the Kingdom doesn’t stand a chance.”

“Yeah, we’ll show em!” Caspar yelled bravely. Edelgard had always admired how much confidence he held within himself. Despite the majority of his house being killed in this war, he was still standing. For Caspar, that was enough reason to believe that this war could still be won.

“We will do this for Fodlan and Brigid,” Petra said, her ascent breaking through but the sentence being said flawlessly. She had learned so much since coming to Fodlan, and Edelgard had to applaud her for doing so much. Learning two languages was something Edelgard could only imagine would be increasingly difficult. But if Petra’s will to learn was as strong as the love for her country, it was not surprising she had flourished so much at the task. 

Edelgard tensed at her friends’ kind words. She knew deep down that it was just the last bit of their hope surfacing. This war had truly turned against them at the last possible moment, and she knew everyone knew it.

Before she could say anything, she felt Hubert’s hand on her shoulder. His hands were always so cold, but their frozen feel was one of the most comforting things Edelgard had ever known. “We will win this, Lady Edelgard.” He claimed with assertion in his eyes; well, the one that wasn’t covered by his dark hair.

Edelgard frowned. “Well, if we don’t there is always plan-“

“No.” Hubert scolded. He knew exactly what she was going to say. “We do not need to resort to that. If you, the Empire may not have an Empress to rule it any longer.”

Edelgard swallowed. She knew this, but she would do it if it came down to it. In the end, she would do whatever it took to win this war, even if it meant turning into a demon herself.

But she couldn’t bear to tell Hubert that.

She could hear the fighting growing louder beyond the door. The Kingdom really would be arriving at any moment. 

“Everyone…” She tried her best to smile. “Thank you… for everything.”

“Don’t talk like it’s ganna be our last time!” Caspar grinned. “We’ll talk again once this is all over.”

“That is precisely true,” Petra agreed. “We will converse with the future after this is finished.”

Dorothea smiled. Goddess, Edelgard missed her smile. “We are going to win, Edie.”

Edelgard gave a weak chuckle. “If that is true, I wish Ferdinand and Bernadetta were here to witness it.”

Even though she acted strong in the moment, Edelgard really did blame herself for their death. And it seemed the same could be said for her allies, who all looked mournful at the names of their former classmates. Caspar, who Edelgard knew missed Linhardt still dearly and hated that he would have to fight him soon, looked the most upset out of the bunch. 

“We will win this for them.” Hubert affirmed. “We will honor them once this is all finished.”

The fighting grew louder. 

“Believe me when I say you are not only my allies, but my friends.” Edelgard brought hope into their eyes once more. “Let us finish this, together.”

Her allies yelled in agreement, along with the remaining soldiers in the room, the strongest the army had, that were ready to fight for their lives. 

_They had to win this._

And just like that, the door to the throne room opened with a loud bang.

But before the fighting began, the throne room began to crumble.

From below just where the Empire army was standing, something emerged from the ground unlike anything anyone had ever seen. The Empire was all crushed by the rubble or they all fell into hole created by the monstrous being before them.

Underground, Thales grew weak from the awaken spell he had just preformed. He smiled wickedly at his beloved creation, keeping his eyes framed on it even as he was crushed by the surrounding debris. 

The Demonic Beast that laid before him would finish what he had started. It would destroy Sothis and very religion she stood for. It would return Fodlan to ruin just like he wanted. 

For the first time, and as his last words, he called the Demonic Beast above by its name, echoing over the screams of the surviving members of the Empire army:

“Nemesis, my King, unleash your fury!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof.  
> You guys didn’t think it would be that easy, did you?  
> So I think officially (hopefully), that there will be five chapters left. Mayyybe six because the second to last chapter will have A LOT in it, so it might be too long for just one. But shit is about to go down :D  
> The next chapter is already finished, so expect it soon!


	34. Reach for my Hand

Demonic Beast? No, this thing was more like the Devil himself.

Nemesis, or whatever Thales called it, was _gigantic._ He was at least three times the size of any Demonic Beast Byleth had ever seen. Pretty much the only thing that even removal resembled a human was his face, but even then, there were parts of it that looked monstrous. His dark eyes were redder than blood, and the left eye had a large scar running down the entirety of his face. His grey hair was so long the clumps of strands were working as extra limbs, extending all the way to the ground, allowing for long range hits. His mostly black body was illuminated only by a few places where a bright, white light shined through, including one that was three scar lines that extended from his shoulder to his chest. And to top it all off, in both of his hands was the Sword of the Creator, one being the black sword he called his own, the other being Byleth’s.

The sight was enough to freeze the battlefield. 

But even a sight such as that couldn’t distract Edelgard.

No, she was too focused on her classmates, her allies, _her friends,_ who were all just killed by this monster.

Nemesis was so large that he caused the throne room began to fall apart, rubble falling from above. Hubert… Her brilliant, loyal Hubert. He sensed what was coming. He was able to act before anyone else could. Just before the room began to concave, he used a warp spell to send her away. He didn’t manage to teleport her far, but it was just enough to prevent her from being crushed along with her allies.

Caspar. Petra. Dorothea. Hubert.

Gone.

At least, that is what she first believed.

In disbelief, Edelgard had ran towards the rubble, searching desperately for her friends, when she heard her name be called. Turning in the direction of the voice, she spotted Dorothea, who was miraculously still alive. She had blood dripping down her forehead and was gripping her arm, but she was still standing. 

Standing amongst the rubble, next to Hubert’s lifeless body.

Even from far away, Edelgard could spot that he was still breathing somehow. His body was limp and lifeless, but Dorothea’s quick healing magic seemed to make him move (or was that just Edelgard’s imagination?). 

“Dorothea!” Edelgard began to ran towards her. She tried not to think about Caspar and Petra still being missing. Edelgard knew deep down that they were dead, likely crushed by the rubble or by this Demonic Beast of Nemesis. But she couldn’t focus on that. She had to focus on Dorothea and Hubert, who she could save.

Dorothea. Hubert.

But just before Edelgard could reach them, more rubble fell from above, crushing Dorothea and Hubert instantly.

Edelgard fell to her knees at the sight. Just like that, her two closest allies, the only two left, were gone in an instant. Dead.

And Edelgard was devastated.

She was supposed to win this war. She was supposed to create a future that would bring peace to Fodlan. A future where she and the rest of her classmates could live out their lives peacefully. A life without the need for Crests or the dictatorship that commanded them. 

Ferdinand. Bernadetta. Caspar. Petra. Dorothea. Hubert.

Edelgard was the only one left.

She was alone.

In her grief, Edelgard didn’t notice Nemesis’s hair flying towards her, eventually connecting and sending her flying across the room. 

She tumbled over herself as her body went flying. It felt like it was never going to stop, but eventually she slowed down. Any slight shifting of her body caused her bones to cry out in pain. She tasted iron in her mouth as she gasped for air, filling her lungs despite part of her wishing that she hadn’t. 

It was over.

It was all over.

Edelgard could hear soldiers charging towards the beast. She could hear their brave screams as they tried to make a difference and take Nemesis down. But their screams eventually stopped. Edelgard knew they were probably dead, but and she didn’t want to look up and receive that confirmation.

But eventually, she used every ounce in her strength to get up on her hands and knees. Nemesis was howling violently as it attacked the countless soldiers trying to fend him off. Bodies and blood were scattered everywhere, many of them from her own Empire, their limbs twisted in ways she didn’t even know were possible. She could only hope that their death came quickly and that they didn’t feel anything. 

She could feel her arms giving out as Nemesis grabbed several pieces of rubble by his hair and began flinging them at the soldiers trying to fight him off. One of those pieces came flying directly at her.

Everything was all over.

But she didn’t die.

Just before the rubble came in contact with her, a familiar blue flash appeared in front of her. With one large swipe of his lance and a glowing, blue flash, the rubble was cut in half and missed them both.

Having no more strength, she fell to the floor.

“El!” 

The voice that once cursed her name was now begging for her to respond, ringing in her ears. She could hear him grunt as he bent down next to her, guiding her protesting body back onto its knees. Her eyes hadn’t adjusted to the light of reopening them until she tasted a bitter liquid on her lips. An elixir, she believed. He was wasting an elixir on her?

Why?

“El…” His voice wasn’t ringing anymore. He sounded concerned.

Finally having the courage to look at him, Edelgard made contact with Dimitri’s singular eye. It was just as blue as she remembered. But it was hard to look at his eye when his bright white hair filled her vision.

She knew he was experiment on. Byleth told her that, and Thales confirmed it not long after. But she had remained in a state of denial, not wanting to believe that something so cruel could have been done to him as well.

But it was hard to ignore when it was right in front of her.

“Can you stand, El?” He said her voice so gentle. “You have to get up, it’s not safe-“

“What are you doing?”

He was taken aback by her harsh tone. 

“Why are you doing this?” She tensed. “Why are you concerned for my wellbeing? Why are you choosing to help me?”

Dimitri looked sad, at least that’s what she thought. “Why wouldn’t I?”

She huffed. “How naïve are you? After everything I did, how could you even stand to look at me?” 

He opened his mouth, but no words came out, so Edelgard continued to speak. “Just… _Look at you._ Look at what they did to you, Dimitri. How can you even look at me, knowing I worked with the very people that did this to you?”

He remained silent, for a while, the only noise filling her ears was the constant fighting around them. “You’re a victim too.”

“That doesn’t give me any sort of excuse.” She retorted. “I should have done more; I should have known they would do something like that again. But I worked alongside them anyway. I was too blinded by my desire for a changed Fodlan to miss what was happening right beneath my nose.”

“I don’t blame you, El.”

She stopped to look at him.

He gave her the smallest smile, but it was mournful. “I know now… what you went through.” His white hair blew in the wind. “I understand why you were so desperate to change Fodlan. You didn’t want what happened to you to happen to anyone else ever again. I was so blinded by rage I didn’t understand at first, but now… Having experienced it for myself…”

He sighed and began to stand, but she remained seated on the floor. “I may not ever forgive you for allying with the very people responsible for Duscur, for the death of my family, for the years of torment it put me through… It still puts me through. But I know now you never could have caused it. All you ever wanted was for Fodlan to be better… To rid it of its harsh systems and secrets hiding beneath. How can I be angry at you for that?”

He was fully standing now. “El… From the moment I came back to my senses, the only thing I have ever wanted was to give my hand to you and have you reach back. We can forgive each other of our mistakes, put that all behind us, and create a Fodlan we can both be proud of. But we can’t do it if this thing destroys Fodlan first.”

Finally, he extended his hand. “El… Let’s finish this, together.”

Edelgard’s purple eyes never drifted from him. She just continued to stare at his singular pool of blue before glancing down to his hand.

Neither of them noticed Byleth running towards them, who saw something Dimitri didn’t see.

Edelgard’s hand reaching back. 

Reaching for her weapon. 

But before Byleth could reach them, she had already acted.

Pushing Dimitri out of the way, Edelgard swung her axe, activating her Crest in the process. While his back was turned to the beast, Nemesis had begun to pick up the large pieces of rubble and began flinging them once again at the coming enemies. Despite having protected Edelgard from one of those very pieces earlier, he turned his back on the Demonic Beast. Before it could hit him, Edelgard had cut the rubble in half with her axe, the heroes relic moving and shifting like a living creature.

She had protected Dimitri.

Even though he had just offered out his hand to her, he wasn’t expecting her to take it. But here she was, not taking his hand but guarding his back on the very battlefield they were once enemies on.

“If you wish to save Fodlan, I would not be so foolish as to turn your back on the enemy.” She remarked to him.

Dimitri, his eye still broadened from what just occurred, gapped at her words. “Edelgard…”

“We can save the talk for later,” Edelgard said, gripping her axe at her side. “For now, we focus on taking this thing down.

He chuckled. “Agreed.”

“Dimitri!”

Byleth huffed out his name as they made it to the two. Their eyes widened as they stared at them, completely in awe of what stood before them. Two of their former students turned enemies, allying themselves together once more.

“Professor, or I suppose I should call you Byleth now,” Edelgard began. “I apologize that I didn’t see this coming earlier. Allow me to help you fix my mistake.”

Starstruck, Byleth turned to Dimitri, who nodded. Nodding back at him, Byleth returned their gaze to Edelgard. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Huh! Would you look at that.” Claude’s voice remained steady over the roaring battle. Swiftly, he road down to the group on Minerva. “Never thought I’d see the day we could all be in the same vicinity and not kill each other.”

“Claude, now is not the time for gest.” Dimitri huffed. “We have to focus on stopping this thing before it takes out all of Fodlan.”

“He has a name you know,” Claude caught everyone’s attention. “I may or may not have snuck a book out of Seteth’s office about this guy. He’s Nemesis, the King of Liberation; although I have never seen him looking quite like this.”

“Just what did the slithers do to make him look like that?” As Dimitri spoke, the beast roared.

“I think we both know they are fully capable of creating such a beast,” Edelgard kept her eyes on the Demonic Beast. “Who knows what rigorous experiments they did to make him turn into such a monster.”

“It doesn’t matter how they did it,” Byleth felt like they were guiding them like a teacher once more. “All that matters is stopping it before it can stop us.”

The former students nodded in succession, prepared to lay their lives on the line for the sake of their country.

And there they were. The three legacies to the three houses of Garreg Mach and their most trusted professor turned deity, prepared to fight the one thing that was threatening their dream of a new Fodlan.

“So,” Claude chuckled, “I suppose you could call this the Alliance of Eagle and Lion, am I right?”

All he received was blank stares.

In response to his light joke being rejected, Claude sighed. “What, nothing? I think it would make a pretty good title for something, if you ask me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINAL BATTLE TIME HERE WE GO  
> I know Edelgard is a controversial character in the game, but she really isn’t a mindless dictator like a lot of people think. I hope I was able to capture the complexity of her here.   
> One other note about Edelgard, when I originally planned this story, I had planned for Edelgard and Dorothea to be an official couple. I mean come on, they are both as gay as the day is long, and they are cute af together. But if there is one cliché I hate more than anything else, it’s the cliché where one of the lesbian girlfriend dies leaving the other one depressed (I’m looking at you Last of Us 2). So sorry Edelgard x Dorothea fans, but I’d rather they be single than do that stupid trope.   
> Since the next few chapters are going to be pretty much all fight scenes, don’t be surprised if it takes longer than usual for chapters to be released. I will try to get them out as fast as I can, but I want these next few chapters to be the best they can be! Just be prepared for a lot of action going forward!


	35. The Alliance of Eagle and Lion

The beginning of the battle was blur.

Granted, Byleth couldn’t really blame themselves. So much was happening at once; this monster Nemesis standing before them, Dimitri and Edelgard reconciling, Edelgard actually fighting alongside them instead of on the other end of the battlefield. It was truly mesmerizing.

But that wasn’t the only thing that had distracted Byleth. As they made their way towards the monstrous Nemesis, only then did they see the true damage this creature had already done. They recalled seeing Linhardt desperately trying to dig his way through the area where Caspar once stood, and if not for Lysithea holding him back, he would have kept searching through the rubble. They saw Marianne trying to heal Abigail, the first person Byleth saw after their five-year slumber, as she laid lifeless on the floor, her legs crushed by the debris. Byleth didn’t have to slow down to know that Marianne’s healing was hopeless, Abigail was already gone, but Marianne hadn’t given up on her yet. 

But was perhaps the most painful was Edelgard’s face through it all, the look of desperation in her face as she looked for any sign of her friends and allies, all the while holding Nemesis off. Hubert, Dorothea, Caspar, Petra, they were gone, and Edelgard knew it, but her look of realization and defeat was heartbreaking.

Edelgard had done terrible things, things that Byleth wanted to hate her for. But no matter how hard they tried; they couldn’t bring themselves to do it. At the end of the day, Edelgard wanted the same thing they did, a better Fodlan for everyone. Her intentions were there, and even though Byleth did not agree with her actions, they understood why she was fighting.

But they could mourn later, Byleth had to stay focused on the battle in front of them.

Claude was putting his leading skills to the absolute test this battle, but was handling it like the future King he would become. This was by far the largest army he had ever commanded, and in addition to that, it was also the most diverse. On top of the already large amount of former students, church soldiers, and Almyran warriors, who had joined the battle before entering the castle, he was now taking charge of the Empire soldiers that still survived. And while there weren’t many, it only added to the growing number Claude already had to look out for. But he took it in stride.

The plan was pretty simple all things considered: long ranged attackers struck Nemesis from afar, trying to stun the creature to allow close range attackers to strike the creature. For a while, things were going alright, but very quickly on Nemesis showed that he had tricks up his sleeve.

Felix had just seen an opening and went to attack the creature when something stopped him in his tracks. Emerging from Nemesis’s body was a ghostly figure riding on a Pegasus, although they didn’t stay on it for long. The humanoid figure quickly jumped off its steed and clashed swords with Felix, the two meeting face to face.

Felix wasn’t expecting Glenn to look back at him.

Felix realized fairly quickly that the figure wasn’t Glenn: the figure was leaner and judging from the armor and the steed they rode they were obviously female, but the resemblance was uncanny. There were so many elements of this woman that just screamed Glenn: the unmistakable eyes, the way their nose flared as they concentrated, how they held their sword until their knuckles went white… the resemblance was almost too uncanny. And it was just enough to distract the swordsman.

Upon being pushed back, Felix stumbled, losing his footing for just a brief moment, but that was all the figure needed. The next thing Felix saw was the woman jumping into the air, ready to strike him down, and if it weren’t for Sylvain interfering, he very well could have been a dead man.

“Felix! What the hell-“ Sylvain didn’t get to question him further since another figure emerged from Nemesis’s body. This figure just looked like a normal great knight, if a normal great knight was a ghostly form radiating black smoke, but that is not what caught the two off guard. Upon swinging his lance, the great knight had activated a Crest that was all too familiar to Sylvain. The Crest of Gautier that came from the great knight was blocked by Sylvain’s Lance of Ruin, but it still sent a chill up his injured arm. 

“The hell are these things?” Felix yelled as he pushed the great knight off of Sylvain. The two quickly then focused their attention on the ghostly figures before them.

Claude noticed the commotion from upon Minerva and swore in response. Dealing with a giant demonic beast was enough, but now he was summoning lackies out of his own body? And not just that, but they had Crests? Possibility upon possibility was running through his mind as he dodged attacks coming from Nemesis, while also dodging arrows coming from a ghostly bow knight with a glowing crest that he and Claude shared. If the legends were true, Nemesis fought alongside the Ten Elites in the war against Saint Serios all those years ago. But could these really be them?

Goddess, it was all so much at once. 

Shaking his head, Claude directed his orders. “Everyone! Focus your attention on taking out these things coming out of Nemesis! They seem tough, so stay alert and try not to get attacked by Nemesis in the process!”

“Easier said than done!” Edelgard yelled across the battlefield as she actually managed to land a hit on Nemesis himself. The creature roared more out of frustration than out of pain as he flung a piece of his hair at the Empress, with her thankfully dodging in time. 

“She’s far from wrong,” Judith chimed in, sounding disgusted with herself for siding with the Empress. “Got any better ideas, kid?”

“Working on it!” Claude yelled as he shot at an incoming wyvern lord that wielded an axe that looked far too much like the one Gilbert used. The shot missed, much to his dismay, and quickly prepared his next arrow. He was just about to aim true when he was struck by a holy knight on the ground below. Thankfully, the hit seemed to only harm him and not Minerva, which he was thankful for, as she didn’t take magical hits well, but falling from the sky wasn’t really on his to do list today.

Claude grunted as he flew through the air, jerking up in the correct direction only when Minerva grabbed him by the shoulders with her claws. He would take the sharp ends of her talons over falling from such a height any day. As gently as she could, Minerva guided him back down to the ground, allowing him to land on one knee as he tried to adjust himself. Hilda, who was nearby, was quick to make sure he was alright.

“Appearances aren’t deceiving with this one,” Claude commented. “He’s just as tough as he looks.”

“Well what are you going to do about it, Master Technician?” She replied with a snarky tone, knowing that he hated that title.

He huffed in response with just a hint of laugher in his tone. “This thing wants to give everything he’s got? Fine. But he should expect our strongest hitters in return.”

Claude briefly went over what he was about to do in his head before going into action. He could worry about the potential risks and consequences later; this thing clearly wasn’t going to be slowing down anytime soon. “Long ranged attackers! Hold off and strike on my mark; we are going to need a solid opening!”

Turning his head quickly, he found the specs of green and white hair that he was looking for. “Teach! Dimitri!”

The two had been fighting alongside each other for the majority of the battle, looking out for each other as they fought whatever ghostly figure or object Nemesis threw at them. But they had Claude’s undivided attention the moment he called their names. “We are going to need to hit this thing where it hurts with our strongest hitters if we want a shot at winning, and I think we all know who that is.”

Claude was happy to see there was only determination in Dimitri’s singular eye. “Teach, get with Edelgard and attack once the ranged attackers unleash their fury, we are going to need a solid distraction.” Claude settled his eyes on the further King of Fodlan. “Dimitri, it’s about time we turn your curse into our blessing.”

After a brief moment of hesitation, one full of processing and not doubt, Dimitri nodded. “Right.” He said, voice full of the confidence and determination that Byleth longed to hear again.

And with their plan prepared, Claude soared into the air, signaling for everyone to get ready. As he flew, Claude noticed most of the major fighting stopped, aside from a few of his close ranged allies doing their best to take out the ghostly warriors of the ten elites. Glancing around, he noticed the illumination of spells being prepared and arrows being drawn. Finally, he noticed Lysithea, preparing her Dark Spikes T, arguably her strongest and signature move, and knew that it was time.

“Fire!” He yelled, shooting his own arrows from Failnaught. There was a brief moment of silence before the attacks finally landed, striking Nemesis from every other direction as he roared in pain. Despite that, however, he still was doing whatever he could to keep attacking, the chains of his duel Creator Swords flying through the room. One of those chains came directly for Claude, which missed but caused Minerva to rear up, and Claude simply wasn’t holding on strong enough. As he fell, he fired more arrows at the creature until just enough attacks his the beast to stun him briefly. 

“Byleth! Edeglard! Go, now!” Claude yelled over the roaring battle, his second fall of the day being stopped once again by Minerva.

The two forementioned warriors didn’t even bat an eye and charged at the beast, coming from separate directions to get Nemesis from both sides. The creature roared in frustration as it tried to attack the former teacher and student pair, but Nemesis was still stunned from the magic attack and was having a difficult time focusing. As a result, Byleth and Edelgard were able to unleash a fury of attacks that gave the already dazed Nemesis even more reason to roar out in pain. Between Edelgard’s double crest activations with her monstrous axe and the hits from Byleth’s Sword of Serios which, despite not being their true sword, was doing quite the number on Nemesis, they were setting the scene perfectly for their final blow.

But things always have to go wrong for this group it seemed, as Nemesis huddled in on himself before roaring violently, lashing out along with it. The hits were fast, inaccurate, and definitely not as deadly as they could have been, as it seemed to be more out of frustration than actually trying to do damage. However, it was still enough to catch the two off guard. Edelgard was lucky and managed to dodge out of the way, but in the process got further and further away from her target. Byleth was not so fortunate and was hit by one of Nemesis’s wild strands of hair, sending them flying backwards.

But this turned out to be exactly what they needed. As Byleth flew midair, Dimitri jumped to meet them. He jumped over them, took the Sword of Serios from their fingers, and ran straight for Nemesis. Activating the Crest of Serios that he was cursed with, Dimitri flung the Sword of Serios directly at Nemesis, hitting him dead center in the face and further stunning him. Then, with a loud battle cry, Dimitri met the creature head on, swinging Areadbhar with furious accuracy. The throne room was nearly illuminated with the blue glows coming from Dimitri’s Major Crest of Blaiddyd activating.

Upon landing from their fall, Byleth was met by Mercedes, who began healing them instantly. Nemesis’s strike was nothing to serious, if anything Byleth only had a fractured rib or two, but they were thankful for Marianne’s assistance. But it was hard to thank Marianne considering that they could not keep their eyes off of Dimitri and the dangerous volley of attacks he was doing.

“Go…” They heard Claude say, who was flying above them on Minerva. Byleth looked up briefly, seeing the sparkle in Claude’s eyes, one that they recognized from their time together at the monastery. He would always get that look whenever he had successfully pulled off a scheme.

Byleth turned back to Dimitri just in time to catch the grand finale. After unleashing what must have been several dozen of hits, Dimitri gripped Areadbhar as tightly as he could and began to gab it violently into Nemesis’s chest, the creature roaring with each hit. Then, with one last activation of his Crest, Dimitri dealt the final blow.

For a moment all was silent. Nemesis didn’t make a sound and almost looked frozen in place, his eyes wide with shock.

But that silence quickly subsided. In a flash of red energy, Nemesis activated a Crest that no one in the room was expecting. The Crest of Blaiddyd glowed red in front of Nemesis’s body as swung one of the Swords of the Creator at Dimitri. If it weren’t for Edelgard, who had tackled him in order to protect him from the swing, Dimitri surely would have been dead. The Sword of the Creator, missing its target, crashed into the wall of the room, instantly collapsing the wall and sending the castle further down into rubble. Nemesis then let out another roar, one so powerful that it nearly sent everyone in the room back.

“What the hell-?” Claude yelled as he shielded himself from the roar’s soundwaves. “Nemesis only had the Crest of Flames in the legends! Unless…”

Realization hit everyone in the room like a tidal wave. Those who slither in the dark had done far more than torture and experiment on Dimitri. They used him to give Nemesis, clearly their prized creation, even more power than he already had. Just how far did they go?

“Even after all that….” Edelgard stared in awe at the beast. “How… How is he still standing?”

“I don’t know…” Byleth breathed. “But something tells me he isn’t going to go down that easily.”

And he didn’t. Things got worse, much worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kinda awkward to end it there but I realized while writing that I am going to need an extra chapter to fit everything in, so had to split it up.  
> So it’s been awhile, huh? Oops. Don’t know if anyone has noticed, but the world kinda went to shit lol. Hope everyone has been staying safe. And it didn’t help that fighting scenes are not my favorite thing to write so I admittedly was stalling. While I still have more fight scenes to fight, the next chapter especially having a lot of writing left to do, I hope to get it out sooner rather than later. 4-5 chapters left, so lets prepare for the angst :3

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully I didn’t manage to call Byleth he/she. If I did, again I apologize.  
> Anyways, hope all you Dimitri angst lovers are ready, because its going to be a bumpy ride.


End file.
